Connecting to Latino Public Radio Programs
About Us
In partnership with you, the Latino Public Radio Consortium (LPRC) will change the world of public broadcasting. Because the LPRC will successfully work with allies and partners, the number of Latinos who listen to public radio programming will increase. The future brings growth in Latino philanthropy for public radio individually as listener-members and in corporate and foundation support for Latino-centric public radio services and projects. More Latinos will invest their sweat equity in public radio, either as employees, members of Boards of Directors or volunteers.
The LPRC is only as strong as its base, the Latino-controlled stations and Latinos in public radio and will work to enhance the financial and operating stability of those entities. The intrinsic value of their decades of experience with Latino audiences, their knowledge of the Latino community and their cultural sensitivity are some of public radio’s greatest resources.
Many in the public radio system are already attempting to increase the participation of Latinos in public media. The LPRC will facilitate those efforts. Even when both parties speak English, interpretation between non-Latinos and the Latino community is oftentimes needed. The LPRC can help non-Latino stations navigate the nuances of Latino culture, identify the appropriate segments for their programming and targeted marketing and help build bridges with Latino community organizations.
The work of the LPRC will have both immediate and long-term effects. LPRC will participate in highly visible projects such as StoryCorps Historia that showcase Latino contributions and instantly gratify the demand for more Latino programming. But other efforts such as the advocacy role of the LPRC, in conjunction with the work of its partners and collaborators, have a slower, evolutionary and cumulative impact that over time will change the face of public broadcasting.
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In its most simplistic form the answer is “programming directed to a Latino audience on a non-commercial frequency that is controlled and directed by Latinos.”
Historically, being Latino-controlled meant a station had a Latino manager as well as a majority of Latinos on its Board of Directors and in its audience, When CPB encouraged public radio service to underserved audiences by augmenting the Community Service Grant with a Minority Incentive, the criteria changed. To qualify for a CPB CSG Minority Incentive, two of three criteria need to be met and the majority of the Board, audience or staff can be a combination of Latinos, Native Americans and African Americans.
Under these relaxed standards, stations with a majority non-Latino audience can still be a Latino station. Public radio stations with an English platform that makes its programming accessible to more than just English-speaking Latinos are “Latino stations” if the majority of its Board of Directors and its staff is Latino.
However, in doing this study and compiling the Directory of Latino Stations, the Latino Public Radio Consortium discovered a number of obvious exceptions that require a more expansive definition. First, the CPB criteria apply only to full power stations. There are at least five low power Latino-controlled radio stations whose mission and interests coincide with those of the LRPC.
Then there are stations in the system which have a strong demonstrated commitment to serving a Spanish-speaking audience. They devote hours of their broadcast schedule to Spanish language programming and the majority of their staff is Latino. These stations identify and collaborate closely with other Latino stations and the LPRC. KSVR although licensed to Skagit Community College whose Board is not 50% Latino and which does not receive the CPB Minority Incentive to their CSG, considers itself a Latino station. Much more than 50% of its on-air staff is Latino, it broadcasts locally originated programs in Spanish and carried Radio Bilingue.
Other stations have dipped their toes into the Latino pool by devoting one or two hours to Latino music genres or Spanish-language news and information. These efforts should be encouraged and expanded. But they should also be analyzed to ascertain their impact and to develop strategies that can enhance their effectiveness.
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