BOCA RATON, FLA. — With fewer in-language information sources at their disposal, the need of Hispanic consumers for Spanish-language broadcast media in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic is perhaps greater than ever. What do they need to know for themselves and their family in the U.S.? What’s the situation in Central America and the Caribbean?
Spanish Broadcasting System’s Mega TV has taken a lead role in devoting nearly all of its broadcasting hours to answering these questions. At the same time, it is working hard to ensure the safety of its on-air and behind-the-scenes team, many of whom continue to report to SBS’s South Florida and Puerto Rico broadcast facilities.
In an interview with RBR+TVBR from his Miami home, SBS COO Albert Rodriguez acknowledged that many staffers continue to report to work. That said, the company has done much to ensure their safety.
“We are constantly having our studios cleaned,” he says. “We do not really allow guests – it happens rarely. When we do, we ask them a series of questions regarding travel outside of Florida. We have a system of place where our security teams that make sure guests are pre-approved by management.”
Hand sanitizers can be found in all of the work areas and in every entry way of the building. Employees have their temperatures taken when entering the SBS building, which faces a normally traffic-clogged Palmetto Expressway. There’s been little in the way of freeway backups for weeks.
With social distancing in effect, those working from home are coordinating efforts with those in the SBS building, who are now able to wear a company-supplied mask if desired.
For those not feeling well, they’re ordered to go home and work from there. Most are.
That said, SBS is a multimedia broadcast facility. Not everything can be done from home. As such, the company makes sure that there is one person in each studio during regular broadcast hours across the radio and TV divisions – in the unlikely event something goes awry.
Then, there are the news anchors and producers. All continue to report as normal, with all new safeguards in place.
COVERING CORONAVIRUS, EN ESPAÑOL
The Mega TV programming day begins at 3pm Eastern. Since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, a nearly wholesale shift to covering the virus transformed its lineup of live in-studio programs.
Nowhere was this more impactful than on Buena Vida, its 3pm hour-long program focused on good health hosted by Dr. Maritza Fuentes. Today, all of the show’s content is on COVID-19 prevention. Questions are taken from the audience and answered, with another doctor assisting with providing knowledgeable answers.
With an audience of consumers who may prefer to use Spanish and with limited access to health care, the information could prove vitally important in “flattening the curve” in communities across South Florida, Puerto Rico and other markets where Mega TV can be viewed.
Similarly, SBS’s radio stations are airing top-of-the-hour news updates, complete with Center for Disease Control (CDC) updates on how to best boost one’s immune system, and how to protect family members from the coronavirus. The content has also been placed on SBS’s Aire Radio Networks, its national radio programming arm, for use by 300 affiliate stations.
The rest of the Mega TV lineup looks a bit different from February. Sketch variety program La Comay is on hiatus “for the next few weeks,” with extended Mega News coverage in that time slot. While is El Show de Carlucho continuing from an outside studio and programs provided to Mega TV from a third party and Alexis Valdes still airs his prime-time variety entertainment program on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays, the nights Valdes isn’t seen is filled with even more news coverage.
On Tuesdays and Thursdays, one can see Nación Zeta Primetime, featuring talent from SBS’s Puerto Rico operations center.
For Jamie Bayly, a signature political commentator airing on Mega TV in the 10pm hour, the discussion topic of the day is the indictment from the Trump Administration of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro – proving that not all of the big issues facing Latinos in the U.S. are tied to COVID-19.
The program offerings are in stark contrast to what can be seen in prime-time on NBCUniversal’s Telemundo network and on longtime leader Univision. “On Telemundo and Univision, prime-time is fiction from 7pm-11pm,” says Rodriguez, who adds that Estrella Media’s Estrella TV – seen in Miami on WGEN-8 — does some live shows, but is a bit more entertainment-based. “Ours? The shows have a heavy focus on COVID-19, the news, the Trump updates, and cracking down on drug cartels in Caribbean. We are mixing in a little bit of entertainment, but for now the focus is on COVID-19, and we have our viewers engaged.”
Programming changes have also been seen on the radio side. At Adult Hits WCMQ-FM “Z92” in Miami, news and commentary from morning host Oscar Haza has been limited to Skype, with Ismael Cala – another well-known political analyst – filling in for Haza in-studio. The temporary shift has already yielded rewards for SBS: Ivan Duque, the President of Nicaragua, was interviewed by Haza on Monday (3/30).
“He’s hit a home run,” says Rodriguez. Interviews with other Latin American leaders are in the works. So is continuing coverage of the 2020 U.S. presidential election, although Rodriguez acknowledges it has taken a back seat to the coronavirus.
How has COVID-19 impacted ad dollars and revenue as content shifts to covering the coronavirus have transpired?
“Everyone looks to Spanish-language broadcasters because we have historically been leaders in revenue growth and OIBDA growth,” Rodriguez says. “We always rely on giving listeners and viewers everything they want, and we have a great team that does a lot of grass-roots events, and I believe that’s been our strength overall. We’ve been able to capitalize on that.”
Rodriguez also takes pride in his belief that SBS has the best margins in the radio industry.
“We continue to grow, and we are very innovative, with new ways of reaching our viewers and our listeners,” he says. “We are working closely with the team and empowering them.”
This, Rodriguez says, will help SBS in participating in what media ecologist Jack Myers predicts will be a CAGR of 3.7% between 2020 and 2025 for total audio ad spending.
While linear audio ad dollars are forecast to decrease by 8.9% during that period, digital dollars and podcast revenue are climbing. With LaMusica.com in the SBS stable, along with Mega TV, Rodriguez and his team led by Chairman/CEO Raul Alarcón Jr. are upbeat.
“These are hard times,” Rodriguez concludes. “We will get through it, and the rebound will be unprecedented. Radio will benefit tremendously, and television will too.”
With Mega TV now on the basic package across AT&T-owned DirecTV and U-Verse systems, some 22 million homes can tune to Mega TV.
It’s the hope of SBS that the programming shift it has taken will help Latinos get through the pandemic, and invite them to stay tuned once its regular programming returns – delivering long-term rewards to all taking the necessary steps to continue delivering vital information to a community in need.
