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– Bundles of free newspapers are stacked by the doors of Chinese supermarkets in New Jersey. Plastered with brightly colored ads, most are backed by powerful institutions, be they religious groups, the spiritual movement Falun Gong or news agencies affiliated with the Chinese government in Beijing.
Sino Monthly, a magazine that costs $1.25 per issue, stands out among the Chinese-language press for something else: its independence. It was founded by a local couple in 1991. They’re still at the helm.
« My magazine is like milk, » founder and editor Ivy Lee says when asked about how Sino Monthly has survived for so long. « Milk has nutrition. It’s very inexpensive and very easy to get. »
Sino Monthly, with six people on the payroll, never aimed to be a paper of record. In fact, it is one, having become a staple for New Jersey’s Chinese community. »We tell the readers where the Chinese are »
Ethnic media outlets can be a lifeline for new immigrants who lack a firm grasp of English. They introduce their readers to civic life in America and to each other. They can be especially helpful in places like New Jersey, where communities are spread out rather than concentrated in big cities. In this state, ethnic media is growing, according to a new report by the Center for Cooperative Media at Montclair State University.
The first issue Sino Monthly, at just 16 pages, led with newly released figures from the 1990 census. It counted 59,084 people living in New Jersey who said they were Chinese. (That figure has since more than doubled.)
« We tell the readers where the Chinese are, » says Lee.
Jennifer Lu, a yoga instructor who’s lived in New Jersey for nearly 40 years, says she used to read articles from Sino Monthly to her children, now in their 20s and 30s.
« It’s a big help, especially to people who just moved to New Jersey or the United States, » says Lu. « There are still many elders who don’t know how to use computers, who still very much depend on the magazine. »
Sino Monthly is nonpartisan but Lee says part of its mission is encouraging readers to participate in the politics of their new home.
