YouTube collects artists from all over the world, and that includes quite a few from Spanish-speaking countries.
The videos by these vloggers can be informative, good for training the ear and fostering cross-cultural understanding, in addition to providing great content.
The best description for Caso Cerrado is Hispanic Judge Judy on steroids. Starring Ana Maria Polo, the show usually airs on Telemundo, but their YouTube channel is well done, too. The progressive show occurs in Florida, and in addition to typical court proceedings, it thrives on sensationalism.
One particularly sensationalist episode is “Serpiente transgénero busca a su hija,” and it’s almost exactly what it sounds like. The defendant is a transgender woman who is also a trans-species snake lady, but Polo does not attack her or paint her as a freak.
Instead, the judge consistently makes progressive statements and advocates for the trans-species snakewoman in front of the plaintiff, the defendant’s daughter, who came to court to sue her.
Another topic the series explores is body image and personal autonomy, exhibited in the episode “Madre vampira.” In this episode, the show provided a celebrity guest (“Ripley’s Believe It or Not’s” vampire woman, Maria Hose Cristerna) to persuade the plaintiff that his partner could go to the same lengths to modify her body and still be a good role model for their children.
Another, “Bebé Sacrificado Al Diablo,” engages in the same kind of sensationalist branding, but it shocks the audience by describing the defendant as a witch intent on sacrificing her child for a dead ex-boyfriend, rather than the progressiveness she shows in other episodes by supporting the LGBT+ community.
Her best videos narrate eerie conspiracy theories, examining murders, celebrities and the supernatural in videos such as “TODO sobre el MISTERIOSO caso de THAT POPPY” or “Las 10 CASAS MÁS EMBRUJADAS del MUNDO y sus INCREÍBLES HISTORIAS.” Her channel is great because it provides well-presented, informative content that also spooks the viewers, using disturbing themes and vibe to create a distinctive brand.
That interest in the supernatural evolves within the “Storytimes” videos, where she chronicles her personal history with the supernatural. One of her particularly sensationalist uploads in this section is “ESTUVE POSEÍDA POR UN DEMONIO,” where she discusses exorcisms and demonology.
In addition to her more popular content, she compiles lists of fun facts for viewers with short attention spans in “Datos Curiosos.” In this area, Paulettee mostly examines pop culture topics, such as “¡20 DATOS CURIOSOS SOBRE STRANGER THINGS!” in which she lists off facts about the popular Netflix drama.
Although not as prevalent as its English-speaking YouTubers, the site also hosts Hispanic content creators who inform viewers about the LGBT+ community in their own language. Tefy is a Mexican lesbian who provides informational YouTube videos about queerness, lesbianism and equality, in addition to her other content.
The video “QUE SIGNIFICA SER QUEER” best explains her approach because rather than aggressively attacking more conservative viewers, she discusses the topic with her non-binary guest who explains queerness more coherently and calmly than any English-speaking LGBT+ educator I’ve seen on YouTube.
Of course, she also uploads content shared by most YouTubers, including videos in which she invites a guest to play a box challenge that requires each participant to guess the object they are feeling on the other side of the barrier, anything from octopus tentacles to jackfruit, as well as showing off her adorable relationship by participating in the girlfriend tag.
Plenty of channels pirate documentaries on YouTube, and any of them could be great, depending on the viewers’ tastes. YouTube hosts channels with content from creators such as National Geographic or the History Channel with Spanish voiceovers, which are great for students without a solid grasp on the language because the limited English within majority Spanish can help orient viewers to the information.
The visuals sometimes aren’t great, but the audio is good; plus, it will link you to other documentary channels that might have better quality.
Everybody likes documentaries because they can cover pretty much any topic, whether it is history, culture, technology or politics. If none of the other content producers on this list tickle your fancy, a documentary will do the trick.
Of course, YouTube offers plenty of Hispanic videos, but it’s hard to find channels that consistently provide content with minimal English and quality audio and visual components. Many documentary sites won’t meet that standard, but the sheer variety of videos available in Spanish does attest to the comprehensive nature of Hispanic YouTube.