Excélsior & La Prensa shut down to launch new Spanish weekly

Freedom Communications, owners of the Orange County Register, Long Beach Register and The Press-Enterprise in Riverside, has decided to eliminate its Spanish-language weeklies Excélsior in Orange County and La Prensa, which covers Riverside and the Coachella Valley. The final editions published under those names is this Friday, March 14.

Excélsior had a 21-year history, while La Prensa had been around for 15 years.

The company has decided to consolidate the weeklies into a zoned, regional publication called Unidos en el Sur de California, effective March 21.

The new publication will combine staff currently working at Excélsior and La Prensa.

According to a company press release, the new consolidated pub will have expanded coverage and increased circulation.

Unidos en el Sur de California will publish four zoned editions every Friday serving Orange County, Inland Southern California, Coachella Valley, and Los Angeles. A fourth zone covering the southeast Los Angeles area and the San Gabriel Valley will be added on March 28.

The total circulation for Unidos en el Sur de California will expand by more than 100,000 to 323,476, which will include copies distributed to Orange County Register and The Press-Enterprise subscribers who request it.