Mexico’s Supreme Court ruled July 13 that government departments could not discriminate against the community radio station La Voladora with official ad spending, La Jornada reports.
In October 2009, La Voladora asked the Department of Health to buy ad space on the station, but the department denied the request, arguing that the broadcaster did not meet its coverage requirements as its health campaigns are national, not local, Frontera reports.
However, the justices ruled that the department’s action was unconstitutional, as it was based on an “unreasonable restriction” that “impedes the full exercise of freedom of expression and information,” Notimex explains.
Note from the editor: This story was originally published by the Knight Center’s blog Journalism in the Americas, the predecessor of LatAm Journalism Review.
