El Especialito is a free Spanish language weekly newspaper magazine, which was originally published under the name of El Especial in the 1980s and renamed in the 1990s.[2][3] It was founded by Cuban American entrepreneur Antonio Ibarria and is distributed by United States Distributions Inc in northeastern New Jersey, New York City and Miami.[4][5][6]
El Especialito is distributed more than 5,500 yellow news racks in thirteen independent zones. With a weekly publication of 250,000 copies reaching more than one million readers, it the largest Hispanic weekly in the US.[7][8]
El Especialito is part of Ibarria Media Group, which employees ninety employees and operates as family business run by Ibarria and his two sons, Anthony and John.[4] The group also publishes the paid weeklies El Especial NY/NJ and El Especial Miami, as well as the celebrity newspaper Personalidades.[9] Ibarria has been commended for his contributions to the community of Hispanics,[4][10] including having a street named for him.[11]