Hispanics might adopt the Internet more slowly under Google’s sea...

their target markets,” if online ad rates rise, said National Executive Director Brent Wilkes. The group endorses a call by Senate Antitrust Subcommittee Chairman Herb Kohl, D-Wis., for a congressional inquiry, Wilkes said. The Justice Department should analyze the deal’s impact on Hispanic shoppers and small business, he said. LULAC’s statement tracks the House Small Business Committee’s scheduling of an online ad hearing (WID June 19 p1); the body is chaired by Nydia Velazquez, D-N.Y., who is of Puerto Rican descent. Oddly, in mid-May, LULAC held a Spanish-language seminar at Google’s Washington office, “geared to helping Hispanic small business owners access the latest Google tools that are being offered,” including AdSense, according to a May 16 press release. The trials were announced a month before LULAC’s seminar with Google (WID April 10 p9). That test was seen widely as Yahoo’s last-ditch attempt to give investors an alternative to a Microsoft acquisition. “We're not saying we're opposing this deal,” Wilkes later clarified to us. LULAC simply wants DoJ and SEC scrutiny, perhaps with conditions such as a freeze on ad rates, he said. The tech industry rarely weighs diversity issues, so LULAC raises them, he said, citing the group’s complaint against an investment firm’s takeover of Univision. AT&T’s SBC merger stands in contrast, he added: “Those companies usually respond with efforts” and have policies to help minorities in broadband access and other areas. Explaining its seminar with Google, Wilkes said the group has raised diversity concerns with the company: “We don’t pause our programmatic effort because there’s a policy difference with a partner like Google.” LULAC leaders aren’t likely to attend next week’s House Small Business Trade Subcommittee hearing because its national convention is the same week, he said.