The Tiger: Emilio Azcarraga and his Televisa Empire.

EMILTO "EL TIGRE" AZC[acute{A}]RRAGA MILMO was far more powerful than the cloying telenovelas, or soap operas, that helped make Televisa the world's leading Spanish-language media group. The son of Mexican radio titan Emilio Azc[acute{a}]rraga Vidaurreta attended but never graduated from a U.S. military school and later sold Encyclopedia Britannica door to door. He married at an early age and became a widower only months later, a loss that metamorphosed the affable and pleasant young man into an impetuous character. With a strong appetite for women and success, the voracious businessman forged a multinational media empire.

In El Tigre: Emilio Azc[acute{a}]rraga y su imperio Televisa (The Tiger: Emilio Azc[acute{a}]rraga and his Televisa Empire) journalists Claudia Fern[acute{a}]ndez and Andrew Paxman recount the life of the deceased emperor of Mexican television. During five years of research, the authors interviewed hundreds of people who knew the magnate and many more who were close to him.

The book dispels many myths about the media baron. Azc[acute{a}]rraga Milmo's father was known as "The Lion," while the son was dubbed "The Tiger." Where did the nickname originate? Some say it was his stripe of white hair. Others say it came from his habit of pouncing on a desired business opportunity. Still others claim that the nickname comes from the despotic way he fired his employees. According to the authors, however, the nickname is derived from a drunken spree during which Azc[acute{a}]rraga accidentally tore a friend's suit.

Throughout his business life, The Tiger was the target of critics--both in Mexico and abroad. His close alliance with the PRI, Mexico's all-powerful ruling party, and Televisa's role as public relations mouthpiece for the state were severely denounced.

Critics also railed against Azc[acute{a}]rraga's penchant for programming that protected the Mexican status quo on social issues--and particularly against the telenovelas that have become the Mexican media group's contribution to global entertainment. As many have noted, the telenovelas upheld Mexican society's old hierarchical order, reinforcing entrenched class and race divisions.

One of most obvious observations about Mexican soap operas is that their heroines are always blond and Caucasian, even if they're poor, and that wealth (that is, happiness) isn't gained through personal effort but rather because a "blue-blooded" prince comes to save the day. Mestizos, on the other hand, who make up the majority of the Mexican population, play the role of servants or workers who have few resources and are nearly always happy with their lot in life.

The book's authors cite commentary by English writer Chris Taylor, who sums up the racial disparity: "Judging from the number of blond women who appear in the programs, one could easily conclude that the Swedes, not the Spaniards, colonized Mexico."

Fern[acute{a}]ndez and Paxman try to offer a balanced vision of Azc[acute{a}]rraga's life. They point to the abundant evidence indicating that Azc[acute{a}]rraga's interests were often directly opposed to the well-being of the Mexican public and, in general, to the populace of Latin America and the United States, where Televisa has established its presence. They also discuss the superficial and escapist programs designed, as Azc[acute{a}]rraga himself once put it, to lull viewers into not thinking about the future.

However, they also point out the benefits Televisa has brought to Mexico: educational and cultural programs, promotion of artists and singers and the dissemination of Mexican culture abroad.

Written with great journalistic agility and in a manner that makes it eminently readable, this biography details Azc[acute{a}]rraga's personal life, the fight to control Televisa following his death and the television monopoly's ties to the Mexican government. El Tigre is a must-read for those who want to understand how this communications empire was built as well as the formidable social and political impact that this man and his company have had on Mexico's recent history.

Excerpt from El Tigre

"Televisa has been frequently described as an octopus that, with its tentacles, grabs all that it can: television, radio, sports, pay TV, magazines, art, etc. Or, like its founder, Emilio Azc[acute{a}]rraga Milmo, as a tiger that attacks quickly and terrorizes smaller creatures with its claws to gain supremacy. Still, Televisa has, more than anything, behaved like an elephant, an enormous beast that goes where its voracious appetite takes it, mowing down everything in its path. As such, the beast represents the nature of all capitalist enterprises--neither innately good nor bad, simply resolved to nourish itself and grow."