La Radio en Yucatan... more of what's on the radio...(segunda parte) 

Listen to it at home, in the car or wherever, but at least know what you're listening to. Here is the continuation of my FM dial tour that I started in the last issue.
97.7 Super Estereo
This is the mother of all 'cool' Yucatecan radio stations. It's been around for a while and is also known as estereo Maya. If no other station makes you cringe with pena ajena or makes you want to punch the DJ's, this one will do the trick.
The premise is to emulate in a yucatecan way, a gringo radio station. Live Dj's are rare except on their horrendous 'Back in Time' show when they play the same music they always play anyway, which consists of 70s and 80's music that the music director (if one exists) bought when he was a student in Ohio in 1980.  New music is limited to the latest editions of 'Now That's What I Call Music' CD's and many awful remixes. They also (like 93.7) have super-corny pre-recorded 'ding-dong' annoucements of the time and, since they have no one with a decent voice, use all manner of voice altering technology to make themselves sound real neat. Lots of mispronounced english thrown around haphazardly completes the interesting mix at this station.
98.5 La Comadre
Si la mueve. Their slogan refers to the music, which is mostly out-of-tune cumbias and tropical stuff.
99.3 No memorable slogan here
This is the corny cousin to 93.7, but it doesn't sound as good, and plays english and spanish 'hits'. At night they have the sexy voice that tells you not to leave the station when they cut for a commercial break. Lots of pre-recorded time announcements etc. since no live DJ could be found. They broadcast the government-loving, nationalistic, anti-foreigner Pedro Ferriz de Con in the mornings; the news show is called Para Empezar. Musical selections are really quite horrid, as is their 30-year-old es digital musical jinglecito.
100.1 Espacio FM
This station, which supposedly broadcasts in stereo, actually only comes through on your right or left speaker; at first I thought it was my radio, but it's the station. Lots of happy DJ's here, most notably the hysterical and totally hyper Guillermo Canales who literally screams song titles on his little evening show Avances. It's always a treat to hear him speaking English; way to go Guillermo. They also have their morning news show called Monitor whch is not as biased as 99.3's and they have the Beba Galvan show, which is a cross-dressing (anything even remotely homosexual is always a hit with the locals) comedian/enne who criticizes everything and everyone.
103.9 Radio Universidad
When I first came to Merida, I thought this station would be the university stations back home; irreverent, hip and really crazy. Radio Universidad in Merida is the complete opposite and correctly and rather unfortunately reflects the conformist and apathetic state of Merida's youth. Instead of punk, they play classical, instead of ribald (look it up) comedy, they play programs from Radio Nederland especially produced for the ignorant masses in Latin America that deal with such pressing issues as that modern invention the telephone and how to care for your sick uncle. Other cringe-inspiring programs include Frente a Frente - La Entrevista, a dry interview program involving students and some funcionario from the UADY's ample supply of bureaucrats. It is also entertaining to listen to a DJ (in all fairness probably a student of radiojournalism) announcing the next classical piece, complete with the composers and interpreters names (usually Russian or German) with such determined seriousness that you can hear the creak of that bamboo pole they have shoved.. oh sorry, this is a family publication.
Their jazz and classical format implies  a more sophisticated audience but when mixed in with the other stuff it is really a hodge-podge. Saving graces include Roberto MacSwiney's very entertaining and enlightening tropical music programs and the Europarade producido por Deutsche Welle La Voz de Alemañia.
In summary
Basically, radio in Yucatan is still en pañales and will probably be that way for a while until we get more people from the outside world living here and starting their own stations.
My recommendation is to keep punching that 'seek' button and changing from station to station as often as you feel it is necessary.
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