Recent statements by María Patiño have sparked a real storm in Spain’s media space. The host of “No somos nadie” did not mince words while commenting on the dire state of one of the country’s largest broadcasters. Her remarks were prompted by record-low ratings for the new daytime show, which was supposed to be Telecinco’s lifeline. Patiño stated outright that talk of a “new era” and the need to wait is just empty rhetoric. In her view, there is nothing and no one left to wait for.
The TV presenter believes that the channel has completely lost its identity. She drew a vivid analogy with a clothing store you enter without being able to tell whether it’s selling hippie style or classic. In such a situation, the customer simply turns around and leaves, unable to find anything for themselves. According to her, the same thing is happening with Telecinco’s viewers. The broadcasting policy has become so blurred and outdated that people no longer identify with the channel and have massively switched to other alternatives. In her words, no new projects can fix the situation until management changes its entire approach.
Patino was especially harsh in her comments about how the channel has been covering the recent events surrounding Mar Flores. She pointed out that efforts to ‘whitewash’ the reputation of controversial figures and turn ‘villains’ into ‘heroes’ have shifted from being an occasional tactic to the core of the editorial strategy. While this once worked as a sort of counterbalance, now that it has become the main narrative, viewers sense the insincerity. “You can’t fool people,” she stated, suggesting that such a strategy is doomed to fail.
Her fellow show host, Kiko Matamoros, fully supported this view. He added that all attempts to refresh the broadcast by introducing supposedly new formats are failing. “Only what worked before still works,” he observed. Matamoros believes that behind the façade of ‘family’ and ‘positive’ programs are the same old conflicts, now just discussed by new commentators. According to both hosts, Mediaset management’s bold claims of sweeping changes require serious adjustment if the channel truly wants to regain audience trust and reclaim its leading position on air.
