Jorge Ramos is in the news lately for being thrown out of the room by Donald Trump and berated by Trump supporters — but Monthly readers who have been with us for at least a few years will know that this is far from the first time he’s appeared in our coverage. This week’s Throwback Thursday is a profile of Ramos by Laura M. Colarusso that appeared in our May/June 2012 issue. As Univision’s star anchor, Ramos played a vital role in the presidential election as a trusted presence on the network that drew 65 percent of U.S. viewers watching Spanish-language TV.
Contrast Trump’s behavior with that of Mitt Romney, who sat down with Ramos a week before the Florida primary to pitch his immigration plan. Colarusso writes:
Yet there was Romney, opposite Ramos on a stage at Miami Dade College, trying to convince Univision’s viewers, many of whom live in Florida, that he was all for immigration—so long as it was done the right way. The questioning was civil but pointed at first. Then Ramos threw a curveball. The veteran broadcaster wanted to know whether Romney felt that he was a Mexican American, since his father was born in Mexico. The question put Romney, whose great-grandfather had fled the United States to avoid arrest for practicing polygamy, in a supremely awkward position. If he said yes, conservatives might think him even more suspect. But if he said no, he would lose one of the few opportunities he had to connect with a vitally important audience. “I would love to be able to convince people of that, particularly in a Florida primary,” Romney responded. “But I think that might be disingenuous on my part.” It was probably the best answer he could have given, but it provided the mainstream press, which covered the interview, with yet another squirm-inducing anecdote about the candidate. And it certainly didn’t help him with Latino voters.
The entire story, which goes into detail about Ramos’ background and the history of Univision, is well worth your time. (Especially if you were going to spend that time watching YouTube clips of Trump.) Read the whole thing here.
