• by Erik Sass  @eriksass1, February 8, 2016

The New York Times has launched a new Spanish-language Web site, The New York Times en Español, which will publish a combination of original content and translations of stories from the newspaper's English-language edition.

The new Web site, optimized for mobile consumption, debuts in advance of the upcoming papal visit to Mexico.

The New York Times en Español features content produced by a dedicated editorial team based in Mexico City, as well as the work of NYT correspondents across Latin America and areas with Spanish-speaking populations, including Venezuela, Argentina, Brazil and Miami, with additional coverage and oversight from the newspaper’s headquarters in New York City.

Content will include breaking news, long-form journalism, investigative reporting, opinion, reviews, photos and video.

The New York Times en Español will feature Spanish translations of relevant content from the paper’s main edition, including reporting and opinion; some of its original Spanish-language reporting will appear on the NYT Web site in English translation as well.

Content on the new site is free and doesn’t count toward the limit of 10 online articles per month for non-subscribers on the NYT’s English-language site. Readers can also sign up for a weekly Spanish-language email newsletter, Boletin.

The Spanish-language edition debuts with launch sponsors including Acciona, a Spanish renewable energy conglomerate; Banamex, Mexico’s second-largest bank chain, a subsidiary of Citigroup; and the Formula 1 Gran Premio de Mexico 2016, the high-profile race scheduled for October 28-30 in Mexico City.

The NYT’s expansion in Latin America comes as other big publishers and tech firms are retrenching.

Last month, for example, Yahoo announced that it is closing its regional offices in Mexico and Argentina. In the U.S., media watchers have speculated that New York City’s El Diaro/La Prensa, the country’s oldest Spanish-language news publisher, may be forced to shut down following staff cuts and union troubles.