Friday, July 16, 2010

Another July 4 Loser

Rubén Aguilar says the media can't tip the scales in Mexican elections the way it used to:
Media outlets favorable to the government no longer have the same influence as they did in the past. In some states the governors have a good part of the local media, as well as the electoral institutes, under their control. This election proves that the "purchased" newspapers or radio and TV news shows no longer make a difference: not only because voters now have other ways of informing themselves but also because they don't let coverage from outlets serving the sitting governor impact them. In electoral terms, the "purchase" of media is money down the drain.
It's interesting thesis, but the writing style leads me to be skeptical of how true it is. Excessive scare quotes, and they are all over this piece, are too often a substitute for airtight logic.

2 comments:

David Agren said...

The problem with these local publications loyal to political masters is the lack of sophistication in the coverage. Actually, The News is an excellent example of this. Some of its pages - I'm told - are sponsored by the government of the State of Mexico. Okay, instead of just filling the pages with fluff like PRI politicians cutting ribbons, why not cover these people in a professional manner? It would serve them better in the long run.

pc said...

Yeah no doubt. I guess the mere fact of taking payments reduces the level of professionalism in the ranks.