Radio in Honduras began in 1928, when the Tela Railroad Company established Tropical Radio. The first commercial radio station, Radio HRN, began broadcasting in 1933.
In August 1920 a group known as Los Chicos del Coliseo began broadcasting from Teatro Coliseo in Buenos Aires, but it would take many years for radio to arrive in places such as the isthmus of Central America. In Honduras, radio experimentation had begun with local transmissions. American companies (known as bananeras) were just a few of the companies providing employment before and after World War II.
In 1928 the Tela Railroad Company (one of the two major railroads) had received a license to establish a radio station (known as Tropical Radio). It broadcast on the 51-meter shortwave band, and HRB (La Voz del Trópico) was the first radio station in Honduras. HRB was not a "commercial" radio station. It was a medium for the Tela Railroad Company to broadcast its own bulletins.
It also played recorded music and featured live performances by local talent (including the Sisters Cordova and pianist Guadalupe Ferrari Hartling), marimba bands, singers, poets and other artists. HRB did not last long, but it inspired several individuals to keep the broadcasting flame alive.
Rafael Ferrari Garcia, an entrepreneur with great ambitions but little money, sold everything he owned to embark on a risky plan; he received permission to install the first commercial radio station in Tegucigalpa. It was known as La Voz del Comercio; to maintain its operation, he obtained commercial sponsorship from local businesses (retail and professional) and government agencies. From this HRN (La Primera Emisora del País) was born; Ferrari was credited as the first radio personality in Honduras.
The station was founded on November 1, 1933. Kenneth See and Paul John were the principal technical engineers and attorney Manuel Bonilla Rodriguez, Nicholas Odeh, Rodolfo Brevé Martinez and Ferrari were the station’s staff announcers. Bonilla Rodriguez was the first to broadcast a soccer game in 1935 between a Costa Rican team and Club Motagua, a renowned Honduran team. Assisting Bonilla as engineer was Nat Lopez Fuentes, from a family radio dynasty known nationwide.
There were only a handful of radio receivers and in order to reach a wide audience Ferrari installed loudspeakers at various locations in Tegucigalpa. This was a daily pastime, an occasion for locals to meet and enjoy the programming. At first the programming was limited to news, government bulletins and recorded music. However, during the 1940s the station acquired a more powerful transmitter, reaching audiences in faraway countries with its shortwave signal.
HRN was important during World War II, since it rebroadcast information from the BBC in London and NBC in the United States. Ferrari continued his support of local talent with broadcasts including pianists, marimba bands, orchestras, singers, poets, composers, comedians and amateur artists. After the war, Europe, Asia and North America began to rebuild their economies and Honduras enjoyed some prosperity and tranquility under the Carias Andino regime.
HRN became one of many private enterprises which enjoyed a modest increase in business. During this time, the station replaced La Voz del Comercio for its current slogan, La Voz de Honduras. Ferrari expanded the station, providing opportunity to a new generation of promising talent; some became household names, solidifying HRN's position as a powerhouse of Central American radio.
{The writer; Roque Morán Hernandez, was the youngest announcer during the late 1950s}.
1948 marked the birth of Radio America. At that time Tegucigalpa (the capital) comprised two cities, divided by the Rio Choluteca. It was a small metropolis, both geographically and in population. Radio America broadcast with three kW of power; small by later standards, but sufficient for experimentation. Soon it increased its power to 10 kW, easily reaching audiences in the twin cities of Tegucigalpa and Comayagüela.
The station was first owned by Sergio Castellón who, within a few years, sold it to Cuban entrepreneur Rafael Silvio Peña. Peña, bringing the Cuban concept of radio as a fresh approach, began with live performances (especially radio-novelas, or soap-operas). Peña brought in Emilio Díaz; the two developed programs popular in Cuba such as "La Tremenda Corte", which was known throughout Latin America. Subsequently Dr. Andonie Fernandez bought the station, maintaining its tradition while ushering in a new era.
Several changes took place, the most important of which was the addition of well-known radio personalities and the highest-rated program (“Platicando con mi Barbero”, after the cast left HRN). This program featured a group headed by humorist Herman Allan Padgett, considered a genius for his comic range and originality. Padgett had gathered the best-known talent of the time, including Julio Lopez Fuentes, Abelardo Enrique Avendaño and Ricardo Antonio Redondo Licona. Like HRN, Radio America strives to improve; Fernandez created a conglomerate within the communications industry in Central America. [1]
HRAX-FM Radio Musiquera or better known as Musiquera is a Honduran radio station based in San Pedro Sula, department of Cortés, founded in 1993. It broadcasts from that city through the frequency 93.3 FM. Their catchphrase is "Tu Mejor Compañera." The station currently enjoys a high level of popularity among the Honduran population and abroad. This station is part of the A.G Multimedia group, to which other stations such as Radioactiva 99.7 FM, Estéreo Clase 92.9 FM and the TV channel Activa TV also belong.
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Banana production in Honduras plays an important role in the economy of Honduras. In 1992, the revenue generated from banana sales amounted to US$287 million and along with the coffee industry accounted for some 50% of exports. Honduras produced 861,000 tons of bananas in 1999. The two corporations, Chiquita Brands International and the Dole Food Company are responsible for most Honduran banana production and exports.
Honduras is a republic in Central America, at times referred to as Spanish Honduras to differentiate it from British Honduras, which became the modern-day state of Belize.
The mass media in Honduras consist of several different types of communications media: television, radio, cinema, newspapers, magazines, and Internet-based websites. Honduras also has a growing music industry.
Ángel Alfredo Villatoro Rivera was a Honduran journalist and radio personality, who was kidnapped and killed in 2012 and is regarded as a "journalist martyr". He was one of the seven journalists killed in Honduras in 2012.
The 2014–15 Honduran Liga Nacional season was the 49th Honduran Liga Nacional edition, since its establishment in 1965. For this season, the system format remained the same as the previous season. The tournament began on 1 August 2014 and has ended in May 2015. On 20 December 2014, C.D. Motagua obtained its 13th national title after defeating C.D. Real Sociedad 2–1 on aggregate in the Apertura finals.
Honduras is a touristic destination that attracts visitors due to its natural environment, white and dark sand beaches, coral reefs, abundant flora and fauna, colonial era towns, and archaeological sites. Other attractions include the area's customs and traditional foods. In 2019 Honduras received 2.8 million foreigners, half of those tourists are cruise passengers.
Honduras has rich folk traditions that derive from the fusion of four different cultural groups: indigenous, European, African and Creole. Each department or region, municipality, village and even hamlet contributes its own traditions including costumes, music, beliefs, stories, and all the elements that derive from and are transformed by peoples in a population. In sum, these define Honduran Folklore as expressed by crafts, tales, legends, music and dances.
The National Police of Honduras is the uniformed police force of the Republic of Honduras. The force is organised into regional headquarters, municipal headquarters, headquarters of fixed or mobile stations, and police posts. There are at least 360 police centres throughout Honduras. The National Police of Honduras has its headquarters in Tegucigalpa, the capital city of Honduras. The National Police of Honduras is the fourth largest police body in Central America by number of employees. It is the sixth largest force in Central America by police officers per capita. The force's patroness is the Virgin of Carmen. On 16 July of each year the "National Police Patroness Day" is celebrated.
Moisés Canelo, is the pseudonym of Moisés Canelas Withol, a Honduran singer and songwriter of international recognition.
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The Second Honduran Civil War or the Reclamation Revolution was the armed conflict that took place in the Republic of Honduras in 1924. This was the first conflict in Honduras where airplanes were used for aerial bombardment, and new war tactics inherited from the First World War were employed.
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