SAG seeks more Spanish

100-200 bilingual guild members perform dubbing

By DAVE MCNARY

The Screen Actors Guild is pushing for more English-language programming to be dubbed into Spanish.

The guild is touting results of a recent study it commissioned on viewing habits of Spanish-speaking audiences in the U.S. and the use of the Secondary Audio Programming function to access a Spanish-lingo dubbed track.

Only a handful of series include that feature, according to Carlina Rodriguez, SAG's director of Spanish language organizing. She said most of the dubbing work is performed in Los Angeles by a pool of 100-200 bilingual guild members.

The report -- based on responses from 633 readers from 39 Spanish-language newspapers in 17 markets -- showed that Fox's "The Simpsons" was the most popular among dubbed shows, with 35% of respondents saying they had watched it with the SAP feature within the past three months.

ABC's "Ugly Betty" was the second most popular series in the survey at 23%, followed by CBS' "CSI Miami" at 22%, ABC's "Desperate Housewives" and ABC's "Dancing With the Stars" at 16%.

SAG members dub "CSI Miami" and "Housewives" along with ABC's "Lost."

"This report shows that there are Spanish-speaking consumers eager to watch English-language programs if they are dubbed with Spanish audio," Rodriguez said. "At a time when Spanish-language television networks dominate the ratings, the U.S. English language networks and advertisers may be missing out on a lucrative opportunity to expand their audience nationwide."

SAG noted that 80% of the respondents had used SAP and that 88% would watch more SAP-enhanced programs if they were easier to find. The guild also noted that the Nielsen Co. estimates a 2.3% increase in Hispanic TV homes this season for a total of 44.3 million -- the fastest growth of any major ethnic market.