Argentine journalism

In search of data about the profession

Abstract

Argentina has a long journalistic tradition, with academic institutions that are pioneers in the profession. Nevertheless, the development of studies on journalism remains incipient, which is evinced by the few systematic studies that allow for a diagnosis of the profession’s situation in the country. Studies based on sample surveys concentrate on the last fifteen years and spring, in large part, from the efforts of civil society. In the majority of cases, they were conceived by consultants with the participation of a few universities. Although diverse in reach and focus, almost all of these investigations agree on the scarcity, not only of references to the journalists’ situation, but also of data that can adequately measure the universe of the profession. Because of this, most surveys are principally centered on the journalists of mainstream media from the capital city, who are accessible and measurable but not representative of the entire field. With these antecedents, the available investigations are presented as exploratory interviews, while their results are given a provisional status. The lack of statistical data on working professionals could be attributed to a dearth of centralized registries due to the low participation of journalists in labor unions and civil society. Also influential is the fact that the theoretical frameworks common to the sociology of editorial staffs and to studies of news production have only recently began to be disseminated across the country within the last decade. This weakness in the epistemological base has diversified the methodologies employed for broaching the problem, which have not always been adequate in providing a general diagnosis of the profession, which is still pending.