The rest of the Radio Ambulante team, (from left) Martina Castro (co-founder and senior producer), Nancy López (producer), Daniel Alarcón (executive producer), Annie Correal (co-founder and contributing editor), and Carolina Guerrero (co-founder and executive director). Photos Courtesy Radio Ambulante

If you have ever heard a story that was originally delivered in Spanish, dubbed into English, you may notice that much of the Latino flavor is lost during the translation process.

In an effort to preserve this Latin flavor and the folklore of the expression, Radio Ambulante created a digital radio program entirely in Spanish for distribution via podcast. The podcast—a combination of “personal on demand”(POD) and broadcast (transmission)—is a digital sound file that can be accessed on mobile devices, tablets and computers.

This new radio alternative introduces exceptional Latin American stories from Latinos scattered throughout the world. Stories are delivered with a delightful narrative style that keeps listeners coming back to hear new stories presented on a monthly basis.

According to Radio Ambulante’s co-founder and senior producer, Martina Castro, the original idea for ​​this project came from Peruvian novelist Daniel Alarcón—a current resident of the San Francisco Bay Area.

“He had worked with the BBC on a radio documentary about Andean migration in Perú,” Castro told El Tecolote. “He conducted all of the interviews in Spanish, but all of those original voices had to be covered up with voiceovers, and he saw that something was lost in that process. He wondered if there was a way to make compelling, narrative, BBC- and NPR-style stories in Spanish, but there wasn’t a place for it yet. So Radio Ambulante was born in 2011.”

After conceiving the idea, Alarcón surrounded himself with talented journalists from Latin America and The United States, including his wife Carolina Guerrero and Castro. Castro is also the managing editor of News at 91.7FM KALW, a radio station broadcasting from San Francisco. The Radio Ambulante team produces their programs at the KALW offices, their latest feature—edition number 22—was released in February.

Regarding the promotion of the radio programs, Castro said that they currently advertise on social networks like Facebook and Twitter.
“We also reach out to press outlets throughout the world, and those interviews help us spread the word about the program. We have also held live events where we perform some of our stories as a way of introducing audiences to Radio Ambulante,” she said.

Castro said her group intends to promote and broadcast the programs to a broader audience:

“We are currently in conversation with several radio stations and networks across Latin America and the U.S. so that the podcast can air on terrestrial radio stations in the coming year.”

In an interview with Michael Krasny, Forum’s host for KQED radio, Alarcón said the radio stories aim to demystify the idea that Latinos are monolithic groups.

“The Mexicans not only want to hear stories about Mexicans, but they also want to hear stories about Chileans, Colombians, Americans and others,” so as to convey the diversity of interests that exist, Alacón explained.

Radio Ambulante is characterized by a linguistic and cultural richness that can be used as a tool for education in the classroom.

Radio Ambulante’s team has lived up to its name (Ambulante means itinerant) bringing its programs and performing live to audiences in cities like Los Angeles and most recently in New York, where a discussion panel was held with the renowned writers Junot Diaz, Francisco Goldman and Daniel Alarcón. The panel was sponsored by the Instituto Cervantes and with the purpose of raising funds.

Launching the project with a Kickstarter.com fundraising event, the dynamic group exceeded their expectations and earned more than $46,000, thus confirming the strong support this project has from the public.

The Radio Ambulante programs are available in iTunes. It can also be heard at the website radioambulante.org or by subscribing to its RSS feed to receive new programs. Those interested in sharing an extraordinary story with Radio Ambulante, can send proposals to cronicas@radioambulante.org.

—Traducción Ever Rodriguez