During the lockdown, the number of radio listeners increased in Mexico

During the lockdown, Mexicans chose radio to keep informed about the progress and risks of the Covid-19 virus. According to a document published by the University of Barcelona Spain Pompeu Fabra, entitled The Role of Radio in Crisis Situations. Initiatives in the Coronavirus Pandemic, exposes the importance of radio in situations of health, economic, political and social vulnerability.

“This central role of the medium in the pandemic is also shown in the large number of initiatives that different radio stations around the world have launched. Thus, radio is a medium that, due to its characteristics and the trust it generates, is ideal for serving society in times of conflict.”

A report by the Mexican market research agency INRA, founded in 1946 and recognized by the media for its work on issues of market research and audience measurement, the number of listens increased month by month during 2020. In March, when the “Sana Distancia” day began, radio hit with an increase of 1.7 million listeners.

According to the document, there was an increase of 834,942 net listeners for capital radio between January and November, approximately 9.9% more listeners than the same period in 2019. The month with the highest recorded was November with 9 million 272 thousand 942.

Youth radio was not far behind because the most listened to stations during this period were Los 40 Principales, Exa FM and Alfa 91.3, frequencies characterized by belonging to the modern musical genre.

According to an analysis carried out by La Chasqui, Revista Latinoamericana de Comunicación explains that radio maintains a social work that is adapted to the needs of each country.

“Each country classifies its radio stations according to the need, not only to name it, but to make it alive so that it responds to communicative objectives that favor freedoms and the right to inform and be informed.

That is why citizens during the pandemic preferred informative and musical stations, such as W Radio on Tuning 96.9, Radio Uno on Tuning 104.1 and 88.9 news. There are currently around 1,659 radio stations in the country, of which 1,288 broadcast on Frequency Modulated (FM) and 371 on Amplitude Modulated (AM), based on a report by Media Ownership Monitor México.

The role of listeners goes beyond just turning on the radio and listening, because the National Cultural Communication Service, through the role of the specific public defender, has the rights to provide opinions related to compliance with the code of ethics and editorial principles within programming. of the station.

As well as establishing a communication bridge between society and the medium to provide feedback to identify its strengths and weaknesses, this bridge will be a space for the dialogue of opinions, proposals and solutions, based on the generation of research-backed proposals on programming in audience concerns function.

“In this regard, among the tasks of the Office of the Ombudsman of Radio Educación audiences are the following: The formation of critical audiences aware of their rights, The generation of spaces for dialogue between radio and its audiences and promoting knowledge, appropriation and compliance with ethical principles and publishers that the media voluntarily assumes before its audiences.”

The participation of listeners in Mexico is very important.

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