Spanglish: the language of Hispanic television

The youth is on the rise          

According to Neilson Company estimations, television viewership habits of the U.S. Hispanic community are growing more rapidly than that of the general population. Findings from the media consumption research group found that the growth of Hispanic viewership has grown by 2.3 percent as opposed to the 0.3 percent of the general population.

Based on these statistics, it would seem that the need for Spanish language programming would be on the rise as well, however, the adverse is true. Today, Hispanics are growing up with more English exposure. With 23 percent of U.S. minors identifying with the term Hispanic, it is clear that Hispanic youth being raised in the U.S.is growing exponentially.

Research from Encusta of Miami found that 23 percent of Hispanics prefer to watch television in English as well as 23 percent in Spanish. The preferred method of television viewing was in “Spanglish,” or a mixture of English and Spanish integrated into the same programming. This method was preferred by 47 percent of Hispanics in the U.S.

  

Spanish TV competitors

Hispanics are mostly bilingual, 54.7 percent according to Census data, and this broadens their reach for multiple media outlets. Hispanics can now be reached from both English and Spanish language programming, making them a lucrative target for television advertisers.

The bilingual capacity of the Hispanic community is creating a shift for the future of Hispanic programming, and network giant Univision feels the shift profoundly.  Univision broadcasts in Spanish only, therefore threatening to limit viewers to the 23 percent that prefer Spanish only broadcasting. Univision currently remains the clear giant, however, the bilingual dexterity of smaller yet competing networks like Telemundo and Mun2 pose a great threat to the solely Spanish network.

A bilingual advantage

Telemundo and sister network Mun2, are both targeting bilingual Hispanics ages 18-34. Their programming consists of Spanish and English languages and therefore reaches a larger audience and appeals to the younger generations that may want to watch U.S programming, while maintaining their cultural roots.

When advertising to the Hispanic market via television, bilingual networks may be the ideal outlet for communication. Broadcastingcable.com states that advertisers only pay 70 percent of what English-language television networks charge. Less expensive pricing, along with the majority of Hispanics that prefer bilingual television, make advertising on these stations an effective way to reach U.S. Hispanics.

Although Television advertising is one of the most expensive mediums, there are clear advantages of utilizing it to reach the Hispanic market. There are over 12.1 million Hispanic viewing homes in the U.S, or 85 percent of the population. Additionally, Hispanics, on average, watch 4 more hours of television than the general population, according to Nielsen. With the majority of Hispanics watching bilingual programming, reach becomes exponential to this group. If marketing budgets can withstand television advertising, Spanish and English combination language networks may be a very profitable way to cultivate ad dollars.