SF Giants Spanish-language broadcasters call out inequality

The Giants air their games in English and Spanish, but the two broadcasts are not at all equal

The SF Giants are celebrated for their stellar broadcasts. Kruk and Kuip, Hall of Famer Jon Miller and "new guy" Dave Flemming (in his 21st year with the team) are all great broadcasters, and a key part of the team's identity and even marketing.

But the same acclaim, attention and money doesn't go to the team's Spanish-language broadcasters. Like Duane Kuiper, Tito Fuentes is a beloved former second baseman who has been describing Giants game on the radio for over three decades. And at age 81, in his 31st year as a Giants broadcaster, Fuentes spoke to John Shea of the SF Chronicle about the inequality in the telecasts.

For one, the Giants don't do Spanish-language broadcasts for all 162 games. This year, they're doing 127 of them. Last year it was 121. So for 35 games a year, Spanish-speaking fans estan salados - there's only English-language broadcasts.

Yes, the English-language games make more money. The Giants get a rights fee from KNBR for the games in English, and buy air time for the Spanish-language games. But you'd think that the ability to reach their large number of Spanish-speaking fans - 31% of the population in San Jose - would be worth the money.

Because when a team ditches 35 broadcasts to save money, it sends the message that the team doesn't care about the Spanish-speaking fans. Or its broadcasters. When the Giants went to the White House after winning the World Series in 2010, 2012 and 2014, the English-language broadcast team went along. Fuentes and play-by-play man Erwin Higueros weren't invited.

Pardon our French, but that sucks. For a team that's paying Tommy La Stella $11.5 million not to play for them this season, and Ross Stripling $25 million over two years to sabotage the starting rotation from within for his secret Dodger overlords, it looks cheap. And a little racist!

Nielsen ratings don't cover all Spanish radio stations, which is also, well, not un-racist. That includes KSFN 1510, one of the Radio Lazer stations that air Spanish-language Giants broadcasts. No ratings makes it hard to sell advertising on the broadcasts, which then leads to fewer broadcasts, which leads to even more uncertain audiences. 

How many Spanish-language broadcasts do the Giants' NL West rivals in Los Angeles and San Diego do? All 162 games. The demographics may be different in Southern California, but Nielsen ratings aren't preventing then from giving their Spanish-speaking fans a full slate of games.

It's a question of priorities. The Giants are essentially telling a large portion of their fans that they aren't one.