New TWR Website Builds Connections With Latin Americans

TWR's latest website launch seeks to nurture community and collaboration amongst Latin American partners and listeners. [Image by TWR]

TWR’s ministry in Latin America has launched a new website to build community and collaboration among Christian organizations and boost distribution of gospel media content throughout the region. RTMLatinoAmerica.org was created by and for TWR’s ministry to Latin America and the Caribbean, one of four major global regions where the ministry proclaims the gospel via radio, video and multiple digital media. RTM stands for Radio Trans Mundial, which is the Spanish and Portuguese equivalent of Trans World Radio.

"The digital world has created a new environment with its own language and logic," said Esteban Larrosa, RTM vice president for Latin America and the Caribbean. "It opens up the opportunity for us to complement radio broadcasting with other possibilities of interaction, deepening the relationship with our audience and with the network of stations that use RTM's multimedia content production every day."

Latin America and the Caribbean are home to more than 600 million Spanish and Portuguese speakers, and the international TWR ministry has national partners in 17 of the region’s countries. TWR and its partners share the gospel via the hemisphere’s most powerful AM transmitter on the island of Bonaire, another substantial though less-powerful AM transmitter in Uruguay, many local stations, and various digital platforms.

RTM leaders decided to build a customized website to help achieve several key objectives, and the effort was led by regional International Director Annabel Torrealba and Communications Director Maralina Alfonso. They want to bring social-media users, churches and other Christian organizations to a single site where the ministry can be introduced and content promoted. That includes more than 72 Spanish-language programs produced by TWR and its media partners. They also seek to inform local radio stations – over 600 of which already carry RTM Spanish programs – about the abundant programming available for broadcast.

Another desire is to share articles addressing topics of concern for Latin American audiences. New articles titled “The Silent Enemy,” by Larrosa, and “What Every Man Should Know,” by Carlos Cardenas of Colombia, were posted at the launch. Alfonso said other features are also planned and will debut on the site when ready. The RTM staff believe RTMLatinoAmerica.org will enable them to better interact with and keep informed Latin Americans like this listener in Cuba.

“I listen to your program through Radio Trans Mundial from Bonaire, and it is a great blessing for me,” the listener wrote in an email. “… Unfortunately, here in Cuba there are no Christian radio stations. For this reason and much more, it is very good for the Cuban people to have the great privilege of being able to count on you. Your program nourishes my life.”

Although the new site is aimed mainly at Spanish speakers outside the United States, lively pages geared toward Hispanics in the U.S. are accessible at transmundial.org or via the Español selection under the Regions tab on twr.org.