Today's Video: Telenovelas for Change

Several days ago Bolivian president Evo Morales blasted Facebook and telenovelas for "harming" the country's youth.

"I've recently noticed something that is harming our students: the telenovelas.  They have the right to watch them but we cannot have telenovelas air all afternoon, all night, and throughout the morning," said Morales.

It's debatable as to whether or not Morales is correct about the influence of telenovelas on young people.  But there have been occasions when these programs have led to social change such as in Argentina where one telenovela helped identify a child put up for illegal adoption during the "Dirty War" period.  In Brazil, meanwhile, televised soap operas were credited by researchers with lowering fertility rates.       

The following video is the first part of a documentary that analyzed Nicraguan telenovela "Sexto Sentido" ("Sixth Sense").  The popular hit program tackled serious issues such as domestic violence and homosexuality, and the documentary showed how the writers, actors and viewers grappled with these controversial themes:

Daily Headlines: May 25, 2010

* Venezuela: As part of a government-led crackdown on currency speculating Venezuelan authorities raided the county’s biggest private brokerage on Monday.

* Haiti: Is a “new comedy soap opera” set in a Haitian earthquake survivor camp tasteless or appropriate?

* Panama: President Ricardo Martinelli issued a state apology and a “recognition of mistakes” during Panama’s military rule between 1968 and 1989.

* Mexico: “El Tri” lost 3-1 to England at Wembley in an international friendly roughly two weeks ahead of the upcoming World Cup.

Image –The Telegraph (Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez has widened a crackdown on brokers after accusing them of running a “parallel” exchange market).
Online Sources- The Guardian, ABS-CBN News, AP, Reuters

Weekend Headlines: February 13-14, 2010

* Latin America: Apparently having solved all of his country’s problems Panamanian President Ricardo Martinelli has set his sights on telenovelas from neighboring Colombia.

* U.S.: Could the successor to Cardinal Roger Mahony of Los Angeles be a Latino?

* Mexico: A sixteen-yard-long unfinished tunnel from Tijuana heading north towards the U.S. border was recently discovered.

* Costa Rica: Authorities arrested two suspected drug smugglers and confiscated over one ton of cocaine.

Image – El Espectador (Promo image from Colombian telenovela "Las Munecas de la Mafia" (Mafia Dolls).)
Online Sources- Variety, Los Angeles Times, MSNBC, Reuters

Telenovelas promote Census count

The Spanish-language TV soap operas known as telenovelas are often viewed as an escape from the tedium of reality. With its convoluted plots, hammy acting, and cheap music, telenovelas are primarily fun and entertaining.

There are occasions, however, when these soaps tackle real-life situations and issues of importance to the community. In Argentina, one telenovela raised awareness of illegal “Dirty War” adoptions while a Cuban soap broke taboos in its frank discussion of homosexuality.

In the States, some telenovelas have recently examined topics like the health care debate (in the case of one series developed by Colorado state officials). Though scant Latino groups have urged a boycott of the 2010 Census count, one popular soap has gone in a different direction:

Perla Beltrán, a young woman from the wrong side of the tracks in New York, has suffered a great deal lately — her husband, a thief, has been murdered and she has been associating with lowlifes. But she thinks she has found a way out: as a recruiter for the United States Census Bureau.

Ms. Beltrán, a character in the popular Spanish-language soap opera “Más Sabe el Diablo,” “The Devil Knows Best,” represents only one element of the government’s yearlong effort to garner trust among Hispanics, an ethnic group that has been historically wary of the decennial census process.

The situation is viewed by Census officials and TV network Telemundo as a win-win situation; the former raises awareness of the Census via “people placement” while the latter gets valuable PR and a possible ratings boost.

It’s easy to be dismissive of telenovelas yet they deserve recognition when they try to do something positive for its viewers beyond mere escapism.

Image- New York Times (“The soap opera “Más Sabe el Diablo” featured the 2010 census.”)
Online Sources- NPR, The Latin Americanist, New York Times, UPI

Univision, Televisa settle lawsuit

U.S. Spanish-language network Univision and Mexican media conglomerate Televisa reached a settlement in a lawsuit over royalties.

According to the $600 million agreement between the two firms, Univision will pay Televisa $25 million in back royalties and provide Televisa with $65 million in free ad space on Univision channels. In exchange, Televisa promised to keep its current contract with Univision which lasts until 2017.

Attorneys for Televisa claimed that Univision breached its contract by withholding the payment of over $100 million in royalties. Due to its role as content provider the Mexican firm had more leverage and thus was able to reach a deal that favored them more than Univision:

The amended programming pact should allow Univision to continue as the dominant Spanish-language broadcaster in the United States. Univision commands about 75% of the Spanish-language audience, and its Los Angeles television outlet, KMEX-TV Channel 34, ranks as the nation's No. 1 television station, beating established ABC, NBC and CBS stations…

Televisa's telenovelas generate about $750 million a year in advertising revenue for Univision. Univision is struggling amid a slowdown in advertising at a time it faces looming payments on its $10-billion debt that came from a highly leveraged buyout two years ago.

All is not entirely rosy between Televisa and Univision despite the deal; the two companies are preparing for a March trial to decide over Univision’s Internet rights to Televisa's programming.

Image- New York Times (“Spanish-language soap operas, or telenovelas, are popular shows on Univision. Televisa is Univision’s main provider of programming.”)
Online Sources- Bloomberg, IHT, Los Angeles Times, Reuters, BBC News

Bloggers of the world unite!

• Anarchy in the U.K. Argentina?
• Former Mexican Foreign Minister Jorge Castañeda talks about immigration in his newest novel.
• The sad tale of the parents of gang members indoctrinating their kids from a very early age.
• El Salvador will expand its contingent of troops to the Middle East, but how will the public take it?
• Guatemalan bloggers keep the memory alive of those who have “disappeared.”
• Boricua legislators rejected a proposal to ban same-sex marriage in Puerto Rico.
• Lastly, two blogs examine at a story we talked about last week: the use of telenovelas to lower fertility rates.

Sources- Inside South America, Two Weeks Notice, The Latin Americanist, kottke.org, Gothamist, Tim’s El Salvador Blog, Global Voices Online, The Plainsman Politico, Freakanomics

Image- CNN (“People on Saturday wave flags at Plaza de Mayo in Buenos Aires backing the government's decisions.”)

Telenovelas as birth control?

Often I am very dismissive of the Spanish-language TV soap operas known as “telenovelas” since I usually find them as a waste of time. The plots are trite, the music is cheap, and the acting is a few notches above a substandard adult film.

There are occasions, however, when telenovelas serve a greater purpose aside from being a simple distraction. In Argentina, one telenovela raised awareness of illegal “Dirty War” adoptions while a Cuban version broke taboos in its frank discussion of homosexuality. For Brazil, a recently released study hypothesized that telenovelas have helped lower fertility rates:

Using census data from 1970 to 1991 and data on the entry of Rede Globo [ed. Brazilian television network] into different markets, the researchers found that women living in areas that received Globo's broadcast signal had significantly lower fertility. (And yes, the study did control for all sorts of factors and addressed the concern that the entry of Globo might have been driven by trends that also contribute to fertility decline)…Additionally, people in areas with Globo's signal were more likely to name their children after novela characters, suggesting that it was the novelas specifically, and not TV in general, that influenced childbearing.

So perhaps I should not be as dismissive of telenovelas as I am (especially putting into account that my mother named me after a soap opera character)!

Image- New York Times (“A scene from "Alborada," which was broadcast on Univision.”)

Sources- The Latin Americanist, Foreign Policy Passport

How Do You Say La Fea Mas Bella in Chinese?

Chou Nu Wu Di.
Colombian Betty la Fea launched Mexico's la Fea Mas Bella and here in the U.S. we have Ugly Betty. I've even seen an Indian version on my neighbor's television. Mexico’s Grupo Televisa began production on the Chinese version of La fea más bella.

According to Televisa, the drama could extend for as long as 400 episodes, and it has been “adapted to Chinese tastes” to make sure its content doesn’t offend the locals.

I think the whole original premise is pretty damn offensive, I mean in the end, the fea becomes bella and gets her man. Pero I hate on novelas like that.

Source : Mi Blog es Tu Blog

Quote of the Day: Mundo de novelas

“Through their soap operas we are discovering the similarities that exist between Latin America and Asia, we are all Third World countries.”

--Amanda Ospina- editor of television magazine TVMas- commented on the increased popularity of South Korean soap operas around the world.

Though Latin American telenovelas are among the most viewed worldwide, Middle Eastern TV programmers are especially keen on South Korean soaps since they’re more conservative content is easier to censor. South Korean telenovelas have even expanded into Latin America with three soaps currently airing in Bolivia, Colombia, and Mexico.

(By the way, the post’s title is a play on words from this Soda Stereo song).

Sources- AFP, free-lyrics.org

Image- The Honolulu Advertiser (Ad for South Korean soap opera "Emperor of the Sea")