Do this if you don't receive WhatsApp Broadcast Messages (anymore)

I bought a new Google Pixel 3a recently as my trusted Nokia 5 Android phone was showing signs of age. I wanted to stick with Nokia initially but none of the phones that were available at the time looked attractive enough and I did not want to wait anymore.

Google unveiled the Pixel 3a and I made the decision to pick it instead. More expensive than what I usually paid for a phone but it offered all the things that I liked (including a small form factor).

I transferred data from the old to the new device and restored a WhatsApp backup on the new device as well to restore chat and contacts.

One thing that I noticed after a couple of days of using the new device was that I did not receive any Broadcast messages anymore. Broadcasts differ from group chats in one key thing: instead of allowing anyone to post messages that everyone else in a group can read and reply to, messages flow only between the broadcast operator and individuals. The operator can send out messages to everyone while subscribers only to the broadcast operator.

I'm subscribed to two broadcast channels -- completely different topics unrelated to tech -- and while these two channels did not broadcast every day, the absence of any message over a long period of time was puzzling at first.

The channels were still listed in WhatsApp and I could scroll through the history. I spend some time troubleshooting the issue and discovered that the two broadcast channels were not listed as contacts on the device.

Only contacts who have added you to their phone's address book will receive your broadcast message. If your contact is not getting your broadcast messages, check to make sure they have added you to their address book. Broadcast Lists are a one-to-many communication.

I made the decision to give this a try by adding one of the channels as a contact to see if it would resolve the issue.

I received the first message shortly after I added the phone number of the channel to the contacts.  It appears, that WhatsApp requires that both the broadcast provider and the subscriber have added the other's phone number to the contacts.

Here is how you can find out if you have a broadcast provider in the contacts list on your Android device:

1. Open the WhatsApp Messenger on the device and there the broadcast provider message history (you should have at least sent a message with the subscribe keyword).
2. Tap on the three dots at the top to open the menu.
   1. If you see "Add to contacts": Broadcaster is not listed as a contact and you cannot receive messages because of this.
   2. If you see "View contact": Broadcaster is listed as a contact and you should receive messages.

To resolve this, simply select "Add to contacts" > "Create a new contact", type a name, and hit save.

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