Azcarraga and Mexican Television

As Mexico faces the twenty-first century, it appears that the house of Azcarraga will continue to exercise an inordinate influence. Political pressures likely will persist for the government to take action to lessen the preponderant place of Televisa in Mexico, and specifically over televised news coverage. Ironically, the public support for privatization policies may work to diminish the state's hand to dismember such a powerful corporation, as was the case in the United States when NBC was forced to sell one of its networks by the federal government, leading to the creation of ABC (the American Broadcasting Company).

Regardless of the future of Televisa's corporate power, its programming has left an indelible imprint on the shape and content of Mexican television with widespread cultural implications. Televisa (and its predecessor, TSM) has been the primary source of television programming for the vast majority of Mexicans. Mexico has lacked a viable alternative to the way that Televisa has presented television to Mexican audiences. Government-subsidized programming has met with meager public reception, failing to alter the tastes of most Mexicans for television fare. The formula for Mexican television developed by the Azcarraga empire has enjoyed a long period of dominance, making any substantial change difficult to achieve in the viewing habits and expectations of Mexican audiences.

For his initial formula, Azcarraga borrowed from the staples of his radio programming. In the pioneering days of the medium, popular music shows, sports events (bullfights, soccer, boxing), comedy, and radio soap operas were essentially transferred to television, and in some cases these early shows were transmitted simultaneously for both radio and television. In this sense, the popularity of the established "mix" of programming from radio laid the foundations for television, as Azcarraga parlayed his powerful position in Mexican entertainment to attract major stars to his programs. Indeed, with Mexican cinema still enjoying the aura of its golden age, early television shows often featured wellknown actors, singers, and musical groups drawn from the Mexican motion picture industry. Although Azcarraga produced the occasional serious drama or classical music concert, most of his programming reflected the formula popularized by radio, including adaptations from the United States. In this regard, perhaps the most enduring format was that of the telenovela, or television drama series (i.e., television soap operas). Taking plot lines made familiar by Mexican cinematic melodramas and radionovelas, this type of show became immensely popular with television audiences.