Rumbo shuts down Valley operations

McALLEN - Rumbo, a Spanish-language weekly newspaper, is immediately suspending print operations in the Rio Grande Valley and San Antonio to concentrate on the Houston market, a top company official said late Wednesday.

Monica Lozano, senior vice president for New York-based ImpreMedia, the paper's holding company, refused to disclose how many people might be laid off as the company shifts more resources to its Houston operation.

"We're going to double our circulation in Houston," Lozano said. "Clearly the downturn in the economy is one of the critical factors." 

Some employees in the closing bureaus, including Liza Elizalde, advertising director for Rumbo's Valley edition, are expected to move to Houston.

Founded by Meximerica Media Inc. in 2004, Rumbo began as a full-color tabloid but became a weekly when it failed to attract sufficient advertising revenue. ImpreMedia purchased the paper in December 2007.

The company said in a news release earlier this year that its properties reach an estimated 13 million Hispanic adults a month.

Rumbo will employ freelancers to provide original content from the Valley and San Antonio for the paper's Web site, Lozano said, adding the company is beefing up its online product.

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