Phoenix Spanish News Talk Station Shutting Down

DONE IN BY 'HOSTILITY'?

Border Crackdown Blamed For Loss Of Spanish Talker







Has a crackdown on illegal immigration really wiped out a Spanish- language news-talker? That's the claim in Phoenix, where a local radio station's failure is being blamed on Arizona's "hostile atmosphere" toward "undocumented immigrants".

KNUV-AM was more than just a Spanish outlet, however, it seemed to specifically target "migrants" from Mexico, many of whom have been in the country illegally.

In addition, it took radical political stances that were meant to cater to its lawbreaking audience. Last November, for example, KNUV battled local law enforcement over the description of a serial rapist, who was thought to be Hispanic. The station considered that to be "racial profiling".


Despite the station owner's overall financial collapse, today's Arizona Republic would have readers believe a recent local crackdown on illegal immigration, the state's legislature and Sheriff Joe Arpaio are all directly responsible for KNUV's failure.

From the story by Daniel Gonzalez:

"We will see more Spanish-language publications and media outlets closing because it's a tough economic environment," said Ricardo Torres, chief executive of Latino Perspectives magazine in Phoenix.

Torres, a former manager of Spanish radio stations in Phoenix, said that KNUV was torpedoed by the state's slumping economy and stepped-up immigration enforcement, both of which are driving immigrants from Arizona. That has led to a drop in listeners, which has translated into a fall in advertising revenues.

"The industries that rely on immigrants are hurting: construction, agriculture and hospitality," Torres said.

"And what is happening is the immigrant community is shrinking due to bad economic times and the current hostile atmosphere created by (Maricopa County) Sheriff Joe Arpaio and laws passed by the Legislature."

During the past several months, Arpaio has launched a series of crime sweeps in Phoenix, Guadalupe and Mesa that have resulted in the arrests of hundreds of illegal immigrants.

The state's employer-sanctions law, which took effect in January, has made it increasingly difficult for illegal immigrants to get jobs. It requires employers to verify work eligibility or risk having their business license revoked.

Phoenix is the eight-largest Latino-media market in the country. Launched in August 2005, KNUV's goal was to give Latinos information needed to get by in the larger community, said Heberto Limas-Villers, president of New Radio Venture, the company that owns KNUV and KNRV.

"We wanted to be as informative as we could so they could make decisions about anything from politics to education," Limas-Villers said.

The station's demographic is 35- to 64-year-old Latinos.

At its height, the 24-hour station had a team of 45 reporters, producers and anchors, making it much more expensive to run than a music station, Limas-Villers said.

The station covered street marches and immigration sweeps. Sometimes, interviews with illegal-immigration suspects were broadcast live from the backs of police cars.

Could the bloated staff roster have anything to do with the station's failure? Forty-five "reporters, producers and anchors" is a significantly greater number than one would find at some of the largest and most successful news- talk stations in the country.

Not since the early days of Air America Radio have we seen a head count like that!

Beyond that, what are the odds that illegal immigrants are inclined to fill out Arbitron diaries, even if they were somehow able to receive them?

So what's the real reason for KNUV's failure: the government, or a crappy business plan?


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