Hispanic Council Formed to Resolve PPM Issues

In the US, the Association of Hispanic Advertising Agencies (AHAA) has formed an advisory council to explore 'industry issues and opportunities' surrounding Arbitron's Portable People Meter (PPM).

The council comprises broadcasters Univision, Entravision, Spanish Broadcasting System and ABC Radio Networks, as well as Hispanic ad agencies and two Arbitron representatives: Director of Multicultural Business Affairs Stacie de Armas, and Chief Research Officer Bob Patchen.

Last year, a number of broadcasters criticized Arbitron's PPM, claiming that it under-represented certain minority groups, including Hispanics and African-Americans.

Isabella Sanchez, who is VP/MD of multi-cultural ad agency Tapestry and chairs the new advisory committee, explained that the council had been set up to address what industry members perceived as flaws in Arbitron's methodology, measurement, design, and implementation.

Sanchez added her belief that the preliminary launch of the PPM had resulted in 'enormous declines' in figures for Hispanic radio audience size, station rankings, and the time Hispanics spent listening to their favorite stations.

AHAA Chairman Jose Lopez-Varela said that overall, the association believes the move to electronic measurement is the right thing to do. 'Our goal is to ensure that the methodology and design of the Hispanic sample is executed in the most representative way,' he added.

Web sites: www.ahaa.org and www.arbitron.com .

All articles 2006-23 written and edited by Mel Crowther and/or Nick Thomas, 2024- by Nick Thomas, unless otherwise stated.

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