Renowned researcher Martín Becerra analyzed the main changes in media policies in the current national government.
Martín Becerra, senior researcher at Conicet, was participating in the National and International Congress on Democracy that took place at the Faculty of Political Science and International Relations of the Universidad Nacional de Rosario, discussing the main changes in the communications field of the current national government.
Becerra is a professor at the National University of Quilmes and the National University of Buenos Aires, as well as being a professor of the Master's Degree in Interactive Digital Communication at the Universidad Nacional de RosarioHe also holds a PhD in Information Sciences from the Autonomous University of Barcelona and is the author of books and numerous articles on communication policies, media and information technologies.
He was speaking at a talk called “Communication in crisis, another blow to our democracies: Communication Policy in the era of Milei”, organized by the Department of Policy and Right to Communication of the Bachelor's Degree in Social Communication.
The specialist explained that there is always a temptation to link the emergence of Milei's figure to his relationship with the digital communications ecosystem, that is, with networks and digital platforms. However, he recalled that he became known for his presence in television programs of all kinds, which increased his popularity. "It is always interesting to remember that the media are information technologies, and furthermore, they are technologies that diagram the public agenda in a particular way, influencing the conversations we have on digital platforms, being organizers of them even though these old media are not the ones that capitalize on advertising circulation."
In this regard, he warned that news companies treat information like products found on supermarket shelves. “They place the topics they want to highlight in prime time (or on the main shelf) and send others to the farthest shelf. Likewise, they are losing commercial control of the mass circulation of information and opinion, which generates a very important tension,” and added: “There is a loss of importance as economic actors although they continue to be important as political actors. In fact, Milei continues to give exclusive interviews practically on a weekly basis to a very small group of journalists who have central spaces on television.”
The researcher, together with Guillermo Mastrini, recently drew up an updated map of the media in Argentina, and analyzed how its appearance is changing as a result of the new game proposed by the National Government. “There is the emergence of more or less new groups, which are growing or moderating their participation. For example, we have this new media outlet called El Observador, which has as a shareholder none other than the new foreign minister Gerardo Bertheim.”
In this way, he affirmed that this map will probably present changes in the short term because until now the economy of the media was supported by a commercial logic of operation, with more or less consolidated markets, and at the same time by periodic State aid, by State public policies, such as the Law of Preservation of Cultural Assets of 2003, the DNU of Néstor Kirchner of May 2005 (which suspended the calculation of radio and television licenses for 10 years), the mega-merger between Cablevisión and Telecom authorized by Mauricio Macri, or the obligation that the latter imposed for cable operators throughout the country to upload the La Nación + signal to be on all televisions in the country. “This system was supported by another State aid, which is official advertising, which all governments have assigned as a system of rewards and punishments. There are some governments that were effectively more intense in friendship and punishment, others were less, but all assigned a lot of official advertising,” he explained.
According to the study carried out by the researcher, the print media (newspapers and magazines) lost 99% of their income in 14 years. Many became digital media, although there are still losses. On the other hand, for many decades they have been talking about the end of television, although Becerra points out that it still has a lot of thread on the reel. “In my opinion, it is still alive and kicking. Poorer perhaps, but television continues to organize a good part of entertainment, especially in different social sectors, where it continues to be highly valued as an information source.”
He also reflected on the dogma of commercialization, which puts public, community, cooperative and alternative media in a checkmate situation. “Not all media have to make a profit, these are discussions that we have to have. In a society in which kids gamble from the age of 13, in a context of social and cultural change, where the destiny of life has to be to make money, it is difficult to maintain that there are organizations that perform a function very well without thinking about that aspect or without having profit as their goal.”
Changes in the rules of the game
In December of last year, days after taking office, the President launched DNU 70/23, which modified hundreds of current laws. “The only businessman he mentioned in his speech was Elon Musk, and this was no coincidence. He accelerated the procedures so that Starlink could begin to market satellite connectivity services in the country. This change in conditions was celebrated by Claro, Personal and Movistar at first, although now they are very worried because it is an ambitious competitor,” he stressed and detailed: “All previous governments had strong alliances with some of the local groups, and also fights with some of them, but they always had some ally. It is difficult for me to see what Milei's alliances are with the strong local communication groups, since her sights are set on the big technology companies in Silicon Valley.”
On the other hand, he criticized the fact that the Law on Access to Public Information was modified by decree to protect “private” data of public officials. “If this were to go to court, the executive would have everything to lose, but for that to happen, members of Congress and the judiciary need to act, and the media need to talk about the issue. For now, there is no reaction. Just when Congress rejected the DNU that focuses on expenses reserved for the SIDE, the only one that had that outcome until today, the first criticisms appeared from some media that are usually sympathetic to it. The relationship is very obvious.”
The victory of Donald Trump in the United States elections, whom the President of Argentina singled out more than once, may also be a factor of change. “Trump has a protectionist policy, just the opposite of Milei, and he is very interested in his companies developing in other countries. The National Government is eager for foreign capital and investment to enter, which may lead to many new types of alliances, even mixed with local capital that is not part of the traditional concentrated media system, as may be the case of Marcos Galperin, founder and CEO of Mercado Libre. Opportunities are opening up to buy local media, especially medium-sized ones that I don’t know how long they can sustain themselves in a market where advertising revenue has dropped and there is no state funding, with a recessionary economy.”
With the modifications introduced by the National Government through DNU 70/23 and the “Ley de Bases”, previous restrictions on cross-ownership are eliminated, allowing satellite television companies, such as DirecTV, to acquire television channels and radio stations. In addition, the limit on licenses at the national level is eliminated and the concentration process in the media industry is intensified. The new legislation also equates, in legal terms, satellite television with cable television, and creates the Regime of Incentives for Large Investments (RIGI), which offers tax benefits to foreign capital, among other modifications. These clearly reflect the intention to open the Argentine market to foreign investment and to take power away from local companies.
“In our recent history, there was a strong process of foreignization during the second government of Carlos Menem. However, this process was left halfway and Argentine groups took advantage of the 2001 crisis to promote regulations that would facilitate their recovery. Today, however, Milei is decisively promoting this process. It is no longer about creating multimedia, for which you need a structure based in the country and hiring workers with a strong local presence, but about enabling digital platforms, which can operate with a minimal presence: a small office is enough. A clear example is TikTok, which has 23 million users in Argentina (almost half of the population), but does not have an office or local employees, except for a person in charge of commercial affairs. This is alarming, as is what happens with satellite connectivity services in rural areas, especially with Starlink, which has entered the market offering prices below cost. This practice represents a major challenge for local telecommunications,” he concluded.
Journalist: Gonzalo J. García / Photography: Communications Team of the Faculty of Political Science and International Relations.