Located all over California and North America, these intrepid reporters collaborate on stories about communities that do not receive much attention in the mainstream media. Radio Bilingüe is their voice — “La Voz de la Communidad” (voice of the community), according to Orozco.

“Many of our audiences come from communities that are on the outside,” said Orozco, referring to the shortage of relevant multicultural programming in conventional US media. “Some of our listeners come from countries where there is no tradition of public radio. We have to educate them.”

Executive Director Hugo Morales founded Radio Bilingüe in 1976 in Fresno, CA, home of the network’s Central Valley offices and one of the stations, KSJV (91.5 FM). The first broadcast hit the airwaves in 1980. Samuel Orozco joined the station in 1981. Orozco created Radio Bilingüe’s popular Linea Abierta (Open Line) call-in talk show and the Noticiero Latino (Latino News) daily news and information service. Linea Abierta broadcasts from Fort Mason Center, where Radio Bilingüe has had a presence since 1996.

A History of Community Advocacy

In the 1970s, Morales studied law at Harvard University, but returned each summer to his family home in Sonoma County, where he helped with the annual prune harvest. Morales also worked with Latino activists and farm workers in California’s Central Valley. He recognized how important a Spanish-language radio station could be to this diverse community.

“We wanted to see how radio could help farm workers,” Morales said.

In the ensuing 30 years, Radio Bilingüe has evolved into a substantial public radio network with six stations and satellite and Internet programming transmitted to dozens of other stations throughout the US, Mexico, and Puerto Rico as well as Argentina and Canada. This network is the sole producer of national Spanish-language programming in the public radio system, according to Radio Bilingüe. Morales said there are only 12 Spanish-language public radio stations. Radio Bilingüe owns six of them and hopes to add three more, according to Morales.

“We are beyond just radio — we are also an advocacy organization,” Morales said. “There is very little serious, family friendly, educational media available for Spanish-speaking audiences.”

Eclectic Programs For Diverse Audiences

In addition to the flagship shows Linea Abierta and Noticiero Latino, Radio Bilingüe offers many other programming choices, including music, arts, and culture, and shows about health, sexuality, immigration, politics, science, education, and the environment.

Orozco said it is difficult to determine the number of listeners tuned in to Radio Bilingüe. According to Orozco, the Arbitron media research and rating system used for commercial radio does not track the type of audiences attracted to multicultural and multilingual programming. However, Radio Bilingüe estimates that, at any particular time, more than half a million people are listening to its programs. The total potential audience reachable via the Internet and the broadcast areas served by Radio Bilingüe and its affiliate stations is in the millions.

Listen to Radio Bilingüe on any given day and you may hear shows about legal rights, medical issues, the Mixtec culture of Mexico’s Oaxaca region, or Afro-Brazilian music. For example, Radio Bilingüe recently aired a bilingual version of National Public Radio (NPR)’s acclaimed series, Los Archivos del AND (The DNA Files), on its satellite news service, adding special Spanish-language programs. The network also offers programming in languages spoken by Hmong Vietnamese cultures, Pacific Islanders, people from the Philippines, and indigenous communities of Mexico, such as the Mixtec and Mayan cultures. Morales is of Mixtec heritage.

Expanding Into New Markets and Technologies

Radio Bilingüe plans to increase multicultural and multilingual media options through creative programming, expansion, training more producers and radio staff, and using new media technologies to reach as many audiences as possible. The web site offers Spanish, English, and multilingual content, streaming audio files of broadcasts, blogs, and regularly updated newsfeeds.

Satélite Radio Bilingüe programming is available to about 100 Radio Bilingüe affiliate stations via satellite downlinks. The network recently launched digital high-definition HD radio programming to take advantage of new multiple channels available through HD technology. Among the stations planning to run Radio Bilingüe programming on their secondary HD channels are KQED in San Francisco and KPCC in Pasadena, CA, which reaches much of the Los Angeles area.

However, training the next generation of producers in new media technologies and covering operating expenses is costly. Radio Bilingüe’s target audiences are in many cases from low-income areas. The pledge drives used by other public radio stations to generate listener support are not adequate for the type of funding Radio Bilingüe needs. Radio Bilingüe raises funds and celebrates Latino culture with its annual mariachi music festival. Morales has also gained support from foundations and is always searching for more funds.

Recognition and Collaboration

Fortunately, Radio Bilingüe has earned recognition from the radio world on many occasions, which helps when talking to foundations. In December 2007, Morales learned that he will receive the National Federation of Community Broadcasters (NFCB)’s 2008 Bader Award. NFCB selected Morales to “recognize a lifetime of vital contributions to Community Radio.”

Among Radio Bilingüe’s many other prestigious awards, Morales received public radio’s highest honor in 1999 — the Corporation for Public Broadcasting’s Edward R. Murrow Award. Orozco and Noticiero Latino have also been recognized for excellence in journalism through NFCB’s Golden and Silver Reel awards as well as a Kaiser Media Fellowship.

Radio Bilingüe also stretches its resources to improve programming by collaborating with other stations and organizations. The network partnered with KPCC on a major program about migrant health issues. Alliances with other stations are already underway to intensify coverage of the 2008 elections, when many expect the Latino vote to strongly influence the results. Radio Bilingüe plans live town hall meeting-style broadcasts from Chicago as the political scene heats up.

“We get to do so much only because of our partnerships and alliances,” Orozco said.

Morales said that being part of Fort Mason Center (FMC) has helped Radio Bilingüe collaborate with other nonprofit organizations, particularly fellow FMC residents. Ploughshares Fund founding board chairperson Lew Butler invited Morales to FMC in the 1990s, where he encountered previous FMC residents — NFCB and Western Public Radio. These two groups played big roles in the early days of public radio. While these organizations have moved on, Morales, Orozco, and Radio Bilingüe maintain the strong public radio tradition at FMC.

“It is a privilege to be part of Fort Mason and see all the nonprofits,” said Morales. “It is wonderful that there is space for nonprofits to work here.”