Argentina’s ‘Loony Radio’ making waves
Argentina’s ‘Loony Radio’ making waves
by Cesar Chelala
Special To The Japan Times
Aug 13, 2016
NEW YORK – Antonio Peralta, known to listeners as “exageradamente loco,” or “extremely crazy,” is a well-known radio personality in Argentina whose show is heard by 12 million people. But his studio is hardly conventional: He broadcasts from the courtyard of the largest psychiatric hospital in Buenos Aires.
Like Peralta, all of his on-air colleagues are patients at the hospital. They read news headlines and poems, sing tangos and conduct interviews inside and outside Dr. Jose T. Borda Hospital. Meanwhile Peralta, a tall man with long hair and a pleasant smile, concentrates on the legal rights of mental patients.
Their show is called “Radio La Colifata,” slang for “Loony Radio,” and the patients help produce the weekly show as part of their therapy. It is the first radio program in the world to broadcast from inside a psychiatric hospital, according to the Pan American Health Organization.
“Loony Radio” is one of Argentina’s most popular programs. Broadcast on 58 stations from cold Tierra del Fuego in the extreme south of the country to trendy Buenos Aires, the program reaches 12 million listeners who tune in looking for something out of the ordinary.
More:
http://www.japantimes.co.jp/opinion/2016/08/13/commentary/world-commentary/argentinas-loony-radio-making-waves/#.V6799ORTFOk
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