A day after Jennifer Lopez went back to the Bronx to sign autographs, the nation's top Latin music chain accused her of forgetting her roots. Ritmo Latino banned all J.Lo CDs from its 50 stores Thursday, charging the sultry singer is dissing Hispanic shops.

A frequent leader on Hispanic Business's 100 Fastest-Growing Companies list, LatiNode, will be seeing a $25 million infusion from a another telecom provider that has previously focused on the South Pacific.

It's April, and tax day is right around the corner but small-business owners submitting their 2006 tax returns are in luck.

The latest small beverage outfit to hit the big time is Reed's Ginger Brew (REED), which has 34 employees and started trading its stock over the counter late last year. The Los Angeles company's chief executive officer and founder, Chris Reed, took a circuitous route to success, from brewing his spicy Jamaican ginger beers in 1987 to selling shares directly to his customers in 2006.

Ocean Systems, a Miami-based banking software company founded by a Cuban emigre in 1990, is making a name for itself ensuring the sanctity and integrity of the international ebb and flow of money.

Senate Democratic leaders joined pro-immigrant groups to chastise Republicans for rejecting a resolution in honor of the late Mexican-American labor leader and civil rights activist Cesar Chavez.

In an interview with HispanicBusiness.com, Sen. Mel Martinez, general chairman of the Republican National Committee, discusses looming legislation on immigration reform and the "partisan" hounding that may yet see the attorney general resign.

There's never been a pool of presidential candidates like this. In U.S. Sens. Hillary Clinton of New York and Barack Obama of Illinois and New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson, Democrats have a chance to select a woman, a black man or a Mexican-American as their presidential nominee.

Advertisers' efforts to reach Hispanic consumers are becoming more targeted, and language is a major factor. Advertisers spent more than $3.3 billion to market products to U.S. Hispanics in 2005, a 6.8 percent increase from 2004.

More than 20 percent of Cubans are 65 or older, while a scant 4 percent of Mexicans are in that age bracket. On the other hand, 37 percent of Mexicans and 31 percent of Puerto Ricans are younger than 18.

More women may have the opportunity to crack our Hispanic Business Elite Women List once they Bounce the Boomers.

Hispanics' participation in franchise operations is uneven across industries.