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The second I saw the first episode of Ugly Betty, I knew it would be a hit. It has everything a show needs to be successful; humor, high fashion, glossy people and a spunky lead character that isn’t afraid to showcase her unique sense of style and flair. But the one thing that really gave me the feeling the show would be a huge success was that Ugly Betty is Latina.

Early ratings from the show displayed an interesting trend. Ugly Betty was most popular with African American, Asian and Latina young women. Women of color tend to identify with one another regardless of ethnicity. For most women of color, it’s always a good thing to see a person of color portrayed in a positive light.
Ugly Betty gave young girls around the nation someone to identify with. She became the "every girl", the underdog you were happy to root for and even happier to cheer on when she was victorious. The fact that she’s Latina was an added bonus. The success of the show has lead to something extremely revealing and long overdue, we are moving towards a bilingual, bi-cultural society where everything Latin will no longer be considered exotic but commonplace.

Going into 2007, it is extremely apparent how the world of media and entertainment are beginning to take notice of the demand for content for the Latino population. This explosion in creating new shows, movies, music and other programming for Latinos is long overdue considering that Latinos have been a part of the American cultural exchange for centuries. After the markedly controversial immigration rallies of 2006, the US and the world sat up and took notice of how influential the Latino community has become.

I believe that Ugly Betty is bringing to light the need for characters and stories that showcase the everyday lives and concerns of today’s Latinos. Rather than trivializing or characterizing the Latino population, shows such as Ugly Betty allow everyone a chance to identify without feeling alienated. Shows like these give other cultures a chance to relate to the daily struggles and unique cultural viewpoints of an extremely diverse population that can oftentimes be homogenized by the media.

Due to ignorance and a lack of education about Latinos, many people believe that all Latinos are from one country or have similar cultural values. This type of belief causes a sense of "us" versus "them" which further distances Latinos from the general population. If people took time to learn, they would find a rich population that consists of so many different cultures, ethnic groups and countries.

Because the Latino population is so diverse, I foresee a need to recruit actors, writers, producers and directors from across the Latin Diaspora in order to accurately portray specific ethnic groups. For example, a show like Ugly Betty highlights a young, ambitious Mexican girl - Betty Suarez who lives in Queens and wants to be a journalist. Even though she is a Latina face millions of young Latina girls can relate to, she is still just representing one ethnic group.

When shows like Ugly Betty are showcasing Puerto Rican, Chilean and El Salvadorian characters, we will know that the world has certainly changed and fully embraced the beautiful mosaic better known as Latinos!

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