SPANISH INTERNATIONAL NETWORK

Abstract

The Spanish International Network (SIN) is a U.S. network that imports television programs from Mexico to the United States. It is a subsidiary of the Mexican privately owned television monopoly, Televisa. SIN totally dominates the Spanish-language television market and has become the fourth largest commercial network in the United States. This is a very unusual case in that SIN's existence and success cannot be explained within the current international media flow paradigms. In this article the authors describe how entrepreneurial elements in Mexico utilized the political environment of both countries along with the most sophisticated technology available in the United States in order to create a market for Mexican TV programs. The success of their venture eliminated all U.S. competitors. As a result, the question of cultural domination is raised here in an entirely new form, one that requires a reanalysis of previous explanations.