How a Clergy-Run Radio Revived Basque Identity and Fueled Radical Parties

Insights from the Field

Ethnic media

Basque Country

Political mobilization

Bilingualism

Ethnic parties

Ethnic Media and the Mobilization of Identity was authored by Giacomo Lemoli. It was published by Sage in CPS in 2025.

📻 What Happened in the Basque Country

This study examines how ethnic media — outlets producing content in a minority language — affected the rise of ethnic parties. The case focuses on the late Franco regime in the Basque Country, where an independent radio station run by local clergy promoted a revival of the Basque language through entertainment and cultural programming.

🧭 How Media Shaped Identity and Politics

The central argument is that media embedding cultural traits in entertainment can raise the salience of group identity, making it easier for ethnic parties to mobilize supporters. By normalizing language and culture in everyday media, broadcasters can alter identity dynamics that matter for partisan choice.

📊 Evidence From Archival Records, Contemporary Sources, and Surveys

Archival documentation of the clergy-operated radio station and its programming during the late Franco period.
Contemporary measures of exposure to the station across municipalities.
Survey data capturing political preferences and language use in later periods.

🔑 Key Findings

Exposure to the ethnic radio station increased support for newly formed radical pro-independence parties.
The effect was strongest in municipalities that had previously been Spanish-speaking and that showed low historical support for Basque nationalism — suggesting the station changed identity salience rather than reinforcing existing nationalist enclaves.
The radio station was associated with greater bilingualism among subsequent generations.
Media exposure contributed to the bundling of regional language revival with more radical political ideology during Spain's democratic transition.

🌍 Why This Matters

The findings highlight a cultural-channel mechanism by which media can transform political landscapes: entertainment that weaves cultural traits into daily life can shift identity and create fertile ground for ethnic party mobilization. This has implications for how language-focused media interventions may reshape political alignments during critical historical junctures.