ABSTRACT
The concept of Latin American Transnational Television is imbued with a paradox that is central to our discussion on television genres, formats, and adaptations in the region. Latin America, as a historical idea, includes a vast and heterogeneous territory that is comprised of three dozen nation-states that share some major characteristics, such as a similar religious demographics, a shared and painful colonial past, two closely related Iberian languages, and a social and economic structure that makes this region one of the most unequal regions of the world. Brazil, in comparison to the rest of the countries within the region, relies on a “natural barrier” in the form of the Portuguese language and a vibrant television industry that provides content for the local market. At the same time, its affluent market enables the production of high-budget contents enough to overcome language and cultural barriers within the region and beyond it.
