BROADCAST TELEVISION AND RADIO IN Hispanic Communities More than most other demographics, Hispanics rely heavily on free, local TV and radio broadcast stations. As such, over-the-air TV and radio, multicast networks and Spanish-language programming provide a vital resource for Hispanic communities throughout the United States. Broadcast Television Hispanic Over-the-air Broadcast Television Reliance The number of homes receiving television through an over-the-air antenna continues to rise. Currently, there are 27.8 million such households, making up 23 percent of all U.S. homes.1 Of that number, more than 4.8 million are Hispanic households, representing 15.8 million Hispanic over-the-air viewers.2 In fact, 29 percent of Hispanics use an antenna to receive their programming, a number that increases to 38 percent when looking at Spanish-speaking households.3 Nationally, 15.7 percent of all TV homes rely exclusively on broadcast signals to receive their television.4 However, in high-density Hispanic television markets, as much as 45 percent of all Hispanic TV homes rely on broadcast signals. The chart below demonstrates how Hispanic populations vastly outpace the general population in reliance on broadcast television in some of these high-density Hispanic markets. 5,6 Hispanic Broadcast TV Penetration Phoenix Dallas-Ft. Worth Denver Houston Chicago Austin Las Vegas Los Angeles San Antonio San Diego Tampa-St. Pete Sacramento Hispanic Broadcast Only TV Homes Hartford-New Haven Broadcast Only TV Homes 0% 5 10 15 20% 25% 30 35% 40% 45% 50% Hispanic households’ reliance on over-the-air broadcast television is often much higher than non-Hispanic households, so much so that in some markets about nine out of every ten over-the-air households are Hispanic. Two such examples are Harlingen, where 91 percent of all broadcast-only households are Hispanic and El Paso, where 87 percent are Hispanic.7 Changes Impacting Over-the-air Broadcast Viewers It is critically important to alert Hispanic viewers to changes coming to local TV stations beginning in 2018 through 2020. During this time, nearly 1,000 stations must move to new frequencies. Viewers who rely on an antenna to watch their local broadcast stations will need to rescan their TVs when a station moves to a new frequency to continue receiving the signal. More information can be found at TVAnswers.org. Broadcast-only Dominates Spanish-language Television Spanish-language homes make up a large portion of Hispanic TV households. For example, in Miami, where Hispanic TV homes make up 48 percent of all TV homes, 61 percent of those Hispanic homes speak mostly or only Spanish. In Atlanta, 56 percent of Hispanic TV homes are Spanish-dominant.8 Additionally, broadcast-only households are far more likely to watch Spanish-language television networks than satellite or cable TV homes. The following table shows examples of Spanish-language network viewership in high density Hispanic markets.9 For example, in El Paso (Las Cruces), 62 percent of all viewing of Spanish-language networks comes from over-the-air viewers. V SL N Percent of Cable TV HH D Percent of ADS (Satellite) TV HH Percent of Broadcast Only TV HH 14% 22% 16% 18% 18% 29% 29% 26% 29% 22% 26% 21% 31% 34% 12% 30% 28% 31% 62% 54% 66% 60% 45% 51% 52% 43% 44% El Paso Dallas Phoenix Houston Chicago Fresno- Albuquerque- Los Sacramento- (Las Cruces) Ft. Worth (Prescott) Visalia Santa Fe Angeles Stockton Source: Nielsen, May 2017 *Due to rounding, not all markets equal 100 percent. Hispanic Broadcast Television Affiliates Broadcast TV provides a number of Spanish-language viewing options for Hispanic communities. Several markets with large Hispanic populations offer multiple options. The following are examples of high-density Hispanic markets with large numbers of full-power and multicast channels geared towards Hispanic viewers.10 Hispanic Television Hispanic Multicast DMA Channels Channels Los Angeles 17 22 Phoenix 19 13 Miami-Ft. Lauderdale 14 10 Houston 14 12 Dallas-Ft. Worth 14 8 San Antonio 8 7 San Francisco-Oak-San Jose 5 4 New York 5 6 *Includes Azteca, Enlace, In-Language Spanish, LATV, Mega TV, TBN Salsa, Telemundo, Telemundo Exitos, Univision, Uni Mas and other channels that are in-language or air Hispanic programming. Univision is one of the top five networks in the United States, reaching nearly 90 percent of Hispanic TV homes and with an average of 104 million monthly viewers across all platforms.11,12 Broadcast television also produces some of the most successful Spanish-language programs. Shows like Telemundo’s “El Señor de los Cielos,” which has won an International Emmy award, and Univision’s “Rico Y Lazaro” consistently pull in large audiences.13 Spanish-language TV serves as a vital information access point for Hispanic communities across the country. Univision’s national news program, “Noticiero Univision,” has been serving the Hispanic community for over 30 years and employs many high-profile Hispanic journalists, including nationally- renowned anchor Jorge Ramos. Broadcast networks continue to provide Hispanic audiences with sports programming. The 2018 World Cup Final was broadcast on FOX, bringing in nearly 15 million viewers to its channel.14 Recognizing the popularity, other broadcast networks have been expanding their sports offerings geared towards Hispanic audiences. Univision gained the broadcast rights to 17 of Liga MX’s 18 soccer teams and in 2017, Telemundo secured the Spanish-language broadcasting rights to FIFA World Cup games through 2026.15 In July 2017, Univision was also the number two sports network regardless of language, reaching over 29 million viewers with the CONCACAF Gold Cup.16 Hispanic and Spanish-language Digital Multicasting Affiliates In addition to broadcasting on primary channels, there are a total of 378 Spanish-language multicast channels that provide a variety of relevant programming.17 Univision owns its own Spanish-language multicast network, UniMás, which has a national coverage of 49 percent.18 Estrella TV is also one of the fastest growing minority-owned broadcast networks, with availability in every television market.19 The network provides a combination of talk, news, talent and music shows. The chart below shows Spanish-language multicast networks and the number of channels that carry each network. Spanish-Language DTV Multicast Network Channels20 Telemundo 60 EstrellaTV 24 Enlace 44 Telemundo Exitos 24 LATV 40 Azteca 22 TBN Salsa 37 Univision 10 UniMás 27 Almavision 9 Hispanics’ Role in Broadcast Television Hispanic Americans play an increasingly prominent role in broadcast television, with actors found in diverse leading roles on some of the most popular and award-winning broadcast programs. Sofia Vergara became a household name through her award-winning portrayal of Gloria Pritchett in ABC’s long-running sitcom “Modern Family,” and Wilmer Valderrama has a leading role in CBS’s “NCIS,” one of TV’s most popular series. As a response to the power of Hispanic television audience, broadcast networks continue to produce primetime shows headlined by Hispanic actors. Recent popular examples are The CW’s “Jane the Virgin” and NBC’s “Superstore.” Hispanic Americans can also be found working behind the camera. At Spanish-language TV stations, nearly 94 percent of the TV news workforce is Hispanic.21 With increasing frequency, Hispanics are producing hit broadcast shows. Actresses Eva Longoria and Jennifer Lopez are two high profile examples, producing shows such as “Black-ish,” “Jane the Virgin,” “Shades of Blue” and “Grand Hotel.” Broadcast Radio Over-the-air Radio Adoption by Hispanics At any age, time or location, AM and FM radio are a source of information and entertainment for the Hispanic community. More than 42 million Hispanic persons, or 96 percent, listen to the radio each week, and Hispanic Americans spend nearly 13 hours each week listening to radio at home and on the go.22 Broadcast radio provides many Spanish-language listening options for Hispanic communities across the U.S. There are nearly 1,169 commercial and non-commercial AM/FM radio stations playing Spanish-language or Latino-focused programming.23 Univision is one of the largest Hispanic radio operators, operating 58 radio stations in 14 of the top 25 markets. Additionally, Univision’s radio stations reach 14 million listeners per week and cover approximately 68 percent of the U.S. Hispanic population.24 Entravision Communications Corp., another broadcaster providing Spanish-language listening options, operates 48 AM/FM stations reaching nearly 19 million U.S. Hispanics through its over-the-air broadcasts.25 The following are examples of the amount of time Latinos in major markets spend with English-language and Spanish-language radio each week.26 Time Spent with Time Spent with Market Rank Market English-language Radio Spanish-language Radio (hrs:mins) (hrs:mins) 1 Los Angeles 7:45 8:00 2 Chicago 6:45 6:45 3 Houston 6:30 9:00 4 Miami 6:00 5:45 5 New York 5:30 5:30 Ownership and Economic Impact Hispanic-American Broadcast Television and Radio Station Ownership Hispanics continue to be important stakeholders in broadcast station ownership, holding majority ownership of 671 TV and radio stations in the United States.27 In the broadcast television industry, Hispanics hold majority ownership of 62 full power and 152 low power broadcast television stations as well as attributable stakes in 399 full power and 247 low power television stations.28 In the broadcast radio industry, Hispanics have majority ownership of 176 AM stations and 228 FM stations and partial stakes in 404 AM station and 546 FM stations.29 Local Television and Radio Economic Impact Local TV and radio broadcasters not only provide Hispanic communities with local news, sports, weather and emergency information, but also remain valuable sources of employment that impact local economies.