Blog

New Mexico Gov. Susana Martinez made history when she was sworn in New Year's Day as the nation's first Latina governor.

But the rising GOP star's momentous victory for the Hispanic community earned her little recognition in the national media.

Several mainstream news outlets like the Washington Post and Chicago Tribune -- even FoxNews.com -- neglected to mention her Hispanic heritage, while others such as the New York Times failed to cover the events as she took the oath during a chilly outdoor ceremony on the Santa Fe Plaza.

The apparent oversight prompted some media analysts to question why Martinez – as well as a handful of conservative Hispanics – has been left largely out of the national news spotlight.

"The media is not paying sufficient attention to the number of Hispanic conservatives who are elected to statewide offices and to Congress, especially in the western states," said Mike Gonzalez, vice president of communication at the Heritage Foundation and a former reporter for the Wall Street Journal.

"It goes against the narrative" of the "liberal media," he said, adding that the news industry has long classified Hispanics as "another liberal group."

Martinez’s story is an impressive one. The 51-year-old former district attorney, from middle class roots in El Paso, graduated near the top of her high school class before attending the University of Texas at El Paso and the University of Oklahoma College of Law. In 1996, Martinez was elected district attorney of the state’s 3rd Judicial District, which covers heavily-Democratic Doña Ana County. Touting herself as a no-nonsense prosecutor during the 2010 gubernatorial election, Martinez defeated the state’s Democratic lieutenant governor, Diane Denish.

But the Republican’s rise to statewide office garnered little attention in the national spotlight overall.

The Associated Press made note of Martinez's historic inauguration in a news wire Jan. 1, acknowledging her as the first female governor of the state, while omitting her Hispanic heritage. That story was picked up by several media outlets including the Washington Post and Chicago Tribune websites. FoxNews.com also ran the AP story that day, but Fox News Latino had covered Martinez's candidacy and victory in a series of election articles beginning in October. READ MORE