ABSTRACT
In empirical media research, qualitative methods have not been as common as those methods emerging from the North American sociological tradition. Since the 1970s, numerous participatory or community-oriented radio stations broadcasting for minority audiences have appeared all over the world. In the Third World, participatory radio has often been a component of development programs. The households chosen were speakers of Tojolabal, who are the primary target audience of Radio Margaritas. The station also broadcasts for three other linguistic groups, but it is located in an area populated by Tojolabal speakers. The sample took into account differences among the members of this ethnic group by selecting households from two different villages. Getting initial access to the network was easy because the person who was the headquarters director at the time was interested in research efforts and provided the author with valuable documents and official access to the stations.
