Televisa earns more, TV Azteca almost zero in advertising in 2024

The federal government increased official advertising spending by 39 percent at the end of Andrés Manuel López Obrador’s term and when presidential elections were held; Televisa had its best year in ads since 2019: they gave it 133 million more pesos.

Mexico City, October 24 (However).- In the last year of the six-year term of Andrés Manuel López Obrador, TV Azteca and Mexican Television Operator (Canal 40) only obtained 17.4 million pesos in official advertising contracts from the federal government. This is 85 percent less than the 111 million they had received the previous year, meaning that for the first time since Morena ruled, Ricardo Salinas Pliego’s channels were left out of the list of the 10 media outlets with the most profits from these advertisements.

Already in 2025, the government of Claudia Sheinbaum Pardo completely closed the key to government advertising for those media outlets of the right-wing businessman, who maintains a fight against the Morenoist federal administration after the Tax Administration Service (SAT) demanded payment of 74 billion pesos that he owes in taxes.

The scenario is very different for Televisa. The company that in the past bowed to the PRI regimes, and that a few months ago agreed to broadcast Donald Trump spots against migrants, obtained official advertising contracts for 356 million 860 thousand pesos in 2024. Its highest figure since 2019, placing it as the leader in these revenues.

Between 2020 and 2023, Televisa and Editorial Televisa had not exceeded the threshold of 300 million. In real terms, the increase of 133 million between 2023 and 2024 represented an increase of 52 percent.

Article 19 and the Collective Political organization they concluded that during López Obrador’s six-year term, different agencies of the federal government gave a total of at least 1,877 million pesos to Televisa for official advertising; to The Day one thousand 596 million already TV Azteca one thousand 340 million.

“Together, these four companies absorbed more than 33 percent of the total resources used by the federal government in social communication,” they said.

The updated data of the Social Communication Expenditure System (COMSOC), now in charge of the Anti-Corruption and Good Government Secretariat, detail the expenditure of communication items 36101 and 36201, which had a total budget in 2024 of 3 thousand 569 million 795 thousand 488 pesos. Another item, 33605, had 38 million 602 thousand pesos.

Organizations as Article 19 Last September they complained about the delay of the Secretariat that replaced the Public Service in giving the complete figures for spending on official advertising in 2024. For months the data was only available until November, and December is when the main expenses are recorded.

Regarding 2025, the progress is only from the January-August period. In that period Televisa It has already added advertising contracts for 12.8 million pesos.

They ‘turn off’ TV Azteca

In 2023, the Salinas Pliego media obtained 111 million 387 thousand pesos from official advertising. And by 2024, as observed in the budget items already mentioned, the figure dropped to only 17 million 437 thousand.

Very far from the 367 million in nominal figures that it received TV Azteca in 2019.

The Sheinbaum Government began in October 2024 and for that year there is only the record of two official advertising contracts for TV Azteca. They were signed by Sedena on October 29 and December 6, for an amount of 2 million 824 thousand pesos, in order to promote the “La Gran Fuerza de México” campaign.

In the report from January to August 2025, no amount appears in favor of Televisión Azteca and Canal 40 (Mexican Television Operator).

And although Claudia Sheinbaum’s administration decided to cut official federal advertising to TV Aztecathe Government of Mexico City gave Salinas Pliego channels advertising contracts for 45.7 million pesos this year. The first on January 9, with Canal 40for a maximum amount of 2 million 700 thousand pesos. And the second on February 27, for 43 million pesos. Among the capital government officials who signed the contracts is Ana María Lomelí, General Coordinator of Citizen Communication, who in the past worked as a news anchor for that television station.

Before, in December 2023, with Martí Batres as Head of Government, the capital administration gave TV Azteca a government advertising contract for 23 million, valid throughout 2024.

Also the PAN Government of María Eugenia Campos in Chihuahua, gave between 2024 and 2025 to TV Azteca official advertising contracts for at least 64.4 million pesos, according to the information available on the National Transparency Platform.

Spending increases in election year

In general, the federal government increased official advertising spending in 2024, 39 percent in real terms compared to the previous year. In 2023 the expense was 2,459 million pesos and in 2024 it rose to 3,608 million. That’s a billion more.

The figure of 3 billion had not been exceeded since 2019.

In their report, Article 19 and Collective Policy highlighted that 10 federal agencies in 2024 concentrated almost eight out of every ten pesos invested in official advertising.

“The concentration intensifies even more if only the first four entities are observed: the Mexican Social Security Institute, the National Lottery, the company Tren Maya SA de CV and the Airport, Railway, Auxiliary and Related Services Group Olmeca-Maya-Mexica SA de CV, which together exercised 2,244 million pesos.

In other words, four institutions alone channeled almost six out of every ten pesos of all the federal government’s official advertising, which shows a pattern of strong concentration in a few agencies,” they added.

The Government of Andrés Manuel López Obrador drastically reduced official advertising spending, compared to the waste in the government of Enrique Peña Nieto. It was one of the 100 commitments that he presented on December 1, 2018. This occurred after lEnrique Peña Nieto’s administration spent up to 15 billion in one year on official advertising. Always spending more than what the Chamber of Deputies had approved.

The media that received the most official advertising resources in 2024

Televisa appears in first place, as the medium that received the most resources from official advertising in 2024, with the already mentioned 356 million 860 thousand pesos. In second place is The Daywith 237 million 584 thousand pesos, also considering what was received by The Day of the East.

Then there are Mexican Mass Media, Grupo Multimedios (Milenio Diario, Milenio TV), the corporate names of Grupo Imagen and the public media Instituto Mexicano de la Radio (IMER), which together with its station The Big B of Mexico added advertising contracts for 125 million 848 thousand pesos.

Next are Estudios Churubusco, and in eighth place on the list is Grupo Cantón, which publishes the Enough Diary and that for different social reasons added official advertising income last year for 102 million 762 thousand pesos. Already in 2025, it registered contracts for 1.5 million until August. Grupo Cantón is owned by Miguel Cantón Zetina, brother of the Morena senator, Óscar Cantón Zetina. Its increase in official advertising income coincided with the beginning of the government of Andrés Manuel López Obrador, registering at least 70 million pesos per year since 2019.

Grupo Formula appears in ninth place, with income of 101 million from federal advertisements. This last medium was one of the most criticized by López Obrador during his six-year term.

The ‘top ten’ closes with AMX Content, which is the company name under which the news site signs its official advertising contracts. Uno.TV, from América Móvil by Carlos Slim. In 2024, it registered income of 80 million 409 thousand pesos from this type of advertisements.

The ten media outlets with the highest income concentrated 46 percent of the total advertising expenditure of the different agencies of the federal government.

Regarding digital media, However last year it registered 5.6 million for advertising contracts from the federal government; Infobae 5.8 million; Prisa Brand Solutions (The Country) 5.3 million; Aristegui News 3.7 million; Collective Culture 4.4 million and Political Animal 101 thousand pesos, among others.

The Universal with the company name El Universal Compañía Periodística Nacional appears with the amount of 433 thousand 656 pesos for official advertising in 2024. The magazine Processwith the corporate name Editorial Esfuerzo, registered contracts for 31,756 pesos; the newspaper Reform with the company name Inter-American Communication Consortium had 380 thousand 961 pesos, and in the case of The Financier registered 116 thousand 247 pesos for official advertising.