One Voice from the South Bronx: Q&A with New York Times Reporter David Gonzalez | CentroVoices

Here’s an excellent article and interview with Bronx Hero David Gonzalez, a Bronx born and bred New York Times reporter.

Reporter Samy Nevir Olivares of CentroVoices says of Gonzalez:

“After working at Newsweek, Gonzalez moved to The New York Times in 1990, becoming one of the first Latino staff at the paper. There he led the Bronx and Central America/Caribbean bureaus. Along with reporting, he co-edits Lens Blog and does the biweekly Side Street photo-essay feature for the City Room blog.

For his social conscience and in-depth work, Gonzalez won Columbia University’s Mike Berger Award in May 1992, and the 2008 Distinguished Writing Award from the American Society of Newspaper Editors for “House Afire,” a feature for The Times. He was inducted into the National Association of Hispanic Journalists (NAHJ) Hall of Fame in 2013.”

During the interview, David Gonzalez goes on to talk about the contributions he has been able to make to The New York Times as a Latino reporter and says:

DG: Una punta[sic] de vista muy distinto. Mireya Navarro que se crió en Puerto Rico, Angel Franco el fotógrafo. Again, we all bring to the table our life’s experiences. When I write about, for example, people in the South Bronx who were struggling getting their buildings… you know, struggling for credibility or respect, I know what it is like because I grew up in neighborhoods like that. I know what it’s like because I lived in a neighborhood that was falling apart and where people banded together to demand that the city provides services. We bring insights into a situation that they might not know about. I think that the real thing we’ve got to talk about is that we opened up the world to them in some ways, the world that’s literally right in front of them. I’m not saying that I should be a chauvinistic New Yorker, but I mean our city is so diverse that you can literally find the world in our city. I mean I can point out parts of the city where the Cambodians live, where Canadians live, where the Ecuadorians are. I’m saying, Latino reporters, diverse reporters, because it is not just about being Latino … You know, diversity means a lot more than having people of a particular ethnic descendencia, porque tú y yo sabemos que hay gente que tiene el nombre y tiene el apellido pero no tienen el sabor… (laughs)

Please make sure you read the entire article and interview via One Voice from the South Bronx: Q&A with New York Times Reporter David Gonzalez | CentroVoices.

Also from CentroVoices: Click to hear David Gonzalez talk about reporting from Puerto Rican and Latino communities
and see a sample of his photo coverage since the 1970s. 

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