This study explores magazines starting in the 1990s after or during critical national periods. Th... more This study explores magazines starting in the 1990s after or during critical national periods. The Clinic (Chile), Barcelona (Argentina), Etiqueta Negra (Peru), and El Malpensante (Colombia) established a dialogue within their respective national contexts—Pinochet’s dictatorship in Chile, the economic crisis of 2001 in Argentina, Fujimori’s authoritarian regime in Peru, and the armed conflict in Colombia. Through critical humor, literary writing or intellectual debate, these publications embodied concerns and demands of a particular audience, and filled informative gaps ignored by mainstream media. Building upon a concept of “hybrid alternative media,” this study attempts to answer the following questions: What common characteristics and differences distinguish these publications? What do they represent? How can we analyze them in relation to the new paths of Latin American independent journalism? Distinguishing between satirical and cultural magazines, this analysis also provides insight on the role of these publications within a process of collective healing or cultural reevaluation.Journalis
This article summarizes key ideas about the role of satire in political communication in Latin Am... more This article summarizes key ideas about the role of satire in political communication in Latin America and the United States, through the analysis of examples from Mexico, Argentina, and Peru.
Refiere el autor sobre la revista mas vendida de Chile y convertida en el referente obligado de l... more Refiere el autor sobre la revista mas vendida de Chile y convertida en el referente obligado de la prensa alternativa en Latinoamerica. De humor descarnado, irreverente, de marcado rechazo a la Dictadura militar de Pinochet y en la busqueda constante por revelar las contradicciones de la sociedad chilena.
This article analyzes two digital-native journalistic shows created during the pandemic and hoste... more This article analyzes two digital-native journalistic shows created during the pandemic and hosted from Madrid by Peruvian journalists: La Encerrona [The Confinement] and Sálvese Quien Pueda [Every Man for Himself]. In a context of political instability (with four presidents within a year), social turmoil, a devastating public health crisis, and a highly polarized presidential election in the Bicentenario (the 200th anniversary of the independence of the country), these digital projects counterbalanced the poor performance of mainstream media, which was accused of partisanship and polarization, of firing critical journalists, and of promoting disinformation and disseminating “fake news.” Contrastingly, these entrepreneurial journalistic operations offered alternative contents, perspectives, and sustainability practices within a hybrid alternative media model of production that combines professional experience with editorial and financial independence and a DIY mentality. Through int...
Enchufe.tv, an online comedy series that satirizes Ecuadorian idiosyncrasies and local urban cult... more Enchufe.tv, an online comedy series that satirizes Ecuadorian idiosyncrasies and local urban culture, became the most popular online TV series in the country and a regional phenomenon in Latin America. The online show questions cultural stereotypes and social norms, while adapting and parodying transnational audiovisual formats and entertainment genres. Based on interviews and textual analysis, this chapter analyzes Enchufe.tv as a case study of Latin American digital humor, an increasingly relevant phenomenon to understand how cultural globalization and hybridity operate in today's transnational, multimedia entertainment. The case of Enchufe.tv not only reveals the challenges and opportunities of the digital medium for independent audiovisual projects, but also how the limits of critical humor are negotiated in cultural, political, and commercial terms.
Con un tiraje de 70 mil ejemplares, mas de 160 numeros editados y formato de periodico, The Clini... more Con un tiraje de 70 mil ejemplares, mas de 160 numeros editados y formato de periodico, The Clinic es la revista mas vendida de Chile. Desde su creacion en 1998, este quincenario tambien es un referente obligado de la prensa alternativa en Latinoamerica. Sus caracteristicas son el humor descarnado, la escritura irreverente, su rechazo contra todo lo que implico la dictadura militar y su busqueda constante por revelar las contradicciones de la sociedad chilena.
Las revistas Etiqueta Negra y el Malpensante, de Colombia son dos productos culturales periodisti... more Las revistas Etiqueta Negra y el Malpensante, de Colombia son dos productos culturales periodisticos destacados de la region en la ultima decada. Su finalidad es hacer entender un mundo fragmentado y con demasiadas aristas. El autor del articulo da detalles de las producciones.
This dissertation analyzes the discourse of three infotainment television shows built around thei... more This dissertation analyzes the discourse of three infotainment television shows built around their hosts – characters who have gained considerable importance and influence in their respective countries: American Jon Stewart (host of The Daily Show with Jon Stewart); British comedian Sacha Baron Cohen (the actor who incarnates the popular characters Borat, Bruno, and Ali G in the Da Ali G Show), and Peruvian Jaime Bayly (host of the Peruvian TV show El Francotirador/The Sniper). These three shows responded to their specific national, cultural, social, and political contexts, while simultaneously demonstrating important similarities: they parody journalistic genres while questioning traditional journalism authority and arbitrary media norms; they use humor to develop political, social, and cultural critiques; and they revolve around a talented character who is a media celebrity. Drawing upon theory and literature related to media spectacle, infotainment, tabloidization, celebrity, and the carnivalesque, this research analyzes the three media characters’ discourse and critiques within their respective national and cultural contexts in order to understand their role in those societies and how they negotiate discursive power in the public sphere. This analysis also seeks to reveal how Stewart challenges the mainstream news media by exposing the difficulties of debate in the U.S.; how the subaltern voices of Ali G, Bruno, and Borat position Sacha Baron Cohen to confront hegemonic culture and identity; and how ambiguity and contradiction allow Bayly to be a transgressor in a society where entertainment has a particular political history. This research establishes commonalities and differences among these three representative cases in relation to the broader, global phenomenon of satiric infotainment, and introduces the notion of “critical infotainment” to characterize this satiric trend that combines entertainment, comedy, journalism, popular culture, and politics to develop social critique. Critical infotainment is interpreted as a result of and a transgressive reaction to the process of tabloidization and the cult of celebrity in the media spectacle era. Finally, this dissertation includes recommendations for future critical infotainment experiments to fill the gap left by the traditional press in today’s mediascape.
Chapter 6 focuses on Latin American digital satire, analyzing the cases of: 1) Enchufe.tv, an onl... more Chapter 6 focuses on Latin American digital satire, analyzing the cases of: 1) Enchufe.tv, an online comedy series that satirizes Ecuadorian idiosyncrasies and local urban culture; 2) El Pulso de la República, an independent Mexican online satiric news show created in 2012 by comedian Chumel Torres; and 3) Cualca, an Argentinean satiric sketch show focused on gender issues, created by feminist YouTube star Malena Pichot. Critically dialoguing with their respective national contexts and sociopolitical tensions, these cases not only reveal successful models for the development of Latin American independent digital media but also exemplify how cultural globalization and hybridity operate in today’s transnational entertainment and commercial critical humor.
Brozo, el payaso tenebroso (the creepy clown)—a misogynistic, alcoholic, coarse, and marginal cha... more Brozo, el payaso tenebroso (the creepy clown)—a misogynistic, alcoholic, coarse, and marginal character—is one of the most popular and influential “journalists” in Mexico. His show, El Mañanero, has been broadcast on Mexican TV since 2000, when the 71-year regime of the Partido Revolucionario Institucional (PRI) ended. Chapter 4 analyzes the carnivalesque role of Brozo as a subversive and profane court jester able to confront with impunity the elites at the heart of the Mexican power de facto: Televisa, one of the biggest media conglomerates in the world, which has a problematic adhesion to political power. Connecting with the Mexican tradition of clowns and satiric underdogs, this chapter also examines Brozo’s media performance and discursive configuration in relation to the history of institutionalized corruption and violence against journalists in Mexico.
In 2009, Jaime Bayly, one of the most influential TV journalists of the country, announced that h... more In 2009, Jaime Bayly, one of the most influential TV journalists of the country, announced that he wanted to be the first bisexual, impotent, and agnostic president of Peru. He launched an atypical and unofficial electoral campaign, fueled by his irreverent and popular TV show El Francotirador (The Sniper). Bayly’s yearlong virtual campaign increasingly gained importance and local and international media coverage, but he ultimately dropped out of the race a few months before the election. This chapter analyzes how Bayly constructed his ambiguous and contradictory media persona during his 30-year media career and how he capitalized on its political appeal in his electoral run while revealing social tensions in contemporary Peru, a deeply divided society with fragile social institutions, precarious democracy, and a discredited political class. This chapter also illuminates how massive media spectacle became a contested arena to negotiate political power both during and since President...
In the post-truth era, postmodern satiric media have emerged as prominent critical voices playing... more In the post-truth era, postmodern satiric media have emerged as prominent critical voices playing an unprecedented role at the heart of public debate, filling the gaps left not only by traditional media but also by weak social institutions and discredited political elites. Satiric TV in the Americas analyzes some of the most representative and influential satiric TV shows on the continent (focusing on cases in Argentina, Peru, Ecuador, Mexico, Chile, and the United States) in order to understand their critical role in challenging the status quo, traditional journalism, and the prevalent local media culture. It illuminates the phenomenon of satire as resistance and negotiation in public discourse, the role of entertainment media as a site where sociopolitical tensions are played out, and the changing notions of journalism in today’s democratic societies. Introducing the notion of “critical metatainment”—a postmodern, carnivalesque result of and a transgressive, self-referential react...
Peter Capusotto y sus videos is an Argentinean satirical show that criticizes the entertainment i... more Peter Capusotto y sus videos is an Argentinean satirical show that criticizes the entertainment industry in social and political terms. Hosted by actor and comedian Diego Capusotto, the popular show is broadcast on TV Pública, the state channel in Argentina. Through fictional characters and a documentary/journalistic style, Capusotto ridicules celebrity culture and targets social stereotypes. Chapter 5 analyzes the role of the show in deconstructing and questioning key aspects of the local urban identity reflected in popular culture, more specifically in rock music (rock nacional), a genre with a particular evolution and relevance in the country. Through the analysis of Bombita Rodríguez, Violencia Rivas, and Micky Vainilla, some of Capusotto’s most famous characters, this chapter illustrates how the show’s satirical approach demystifies Argentinean identities that exist within the realm of media spectacle while exposing sociopolitical tensions after the 2001 socioeconomic crisis an...
Chapter 2 analyzes Last Week Tonight With John Oliver (LWT), the political news satire show aired... more Chapter 2 analyzes Last Week Tonight With John Oliver (LWT), the political news satire show aired on HBO since 2014. While TDS satirized TV journalism’s coverage of news and TCR parodied the conservative rhetoric in the media, LWT presents investigations, generating in-depth coverage of national and international public interest issues. Chapter 2 analyzes LWT in relation to the academic debates and scholarly work generated by its successful predecessors. By contextualizing and examining the show in relation to the evolution of political infotainment in the United States, I show how LWT not only fills gaps left by mainstream media, but also takes satire to a more international, activist, and investigative level. Because U.S. political infotainment has been internationally influential, this chapter also serves to illuminate the debates about the genre to be applied to the Latin American cases, which have remained academically unexplored.
This study explores magazines starting in the 1990s after or during critical national periods. Th... more This study explores magazines starting in the 1990s after or during critical national periods. The Clinic (Chile), Barcelona (Argentina), Etiqueta Negra (Peru), and El Malpensante (Colombia) established a dialogue within their respective national contexts—Pinochet’s dictatorship in Chile, the economic crisis of 2001 in Argentina, Fujimori’s authoritarian regime in Peru, and the armed conflict in Colombia. Through critical humor, literary writing or intellectual debate, these publications embodied concerns and demands of a particular audience, and filled informative gaps ignored by mainstream media. Building upon a concept of “hybrid alternative media,” this study attempts to answer the following questions: What common characteristics and differences distinguish these publications? What do they represent? How can we analyze them in relation to the new paths of Latin American independent journalism? Distinguishing between satirical and cultural magazines, this analysis also provides insight on the role of these publications within a process of collective healing or cultural reevaluation.Journalis
This article summarizes key ideas about the role of satire in political communication in Latin Am... more This article summarizes key ideas about the role of satire in political communication in Latin America and the United States, through the analysis of examples from Mexico, Argentina, and Peru.
Refiere el autor sobre la revista mas vendida de Chile y convertida en el referente obligado de l... more Refiere el autor sobre la revista mas vendida de Chile y convertida en el referente obligado de la prensa alternativa en Latinoamerica. De humor descarnado, irreverente, de marcado rechazo a la Dictadura militar de Pinochet y en la busqueda constante por revelar las contradicciones de la sociedad chilena.
This article analyzes two digital-native journalistic shows created during the pandemic and hoste... more This article analyzes two digital-native journalistic shows created during the pandemic and hosted from Madrid by Peruvian journalists: La Encerrona [The Confinement] and Sálvese Quien Pueda [Every Man for Himself]. In a context of political instability (with four presidents within a year), social turmoil, a devastating public health crisis, and a highly polarized presidential election in the Bicentenario (the 200th anniversary of the independence of the country), these digital projects counterbalanced the poor performance of mainstream media, which was accused of partisanship and polarization, of firing critical journalists, and of promoting disinformation and disseminating “fake news.” Contrastingly, these entrepreneurial journalistic operations offered alternative contents, perspectives, and sustainability practices within a hybrid alternative media model of production that combines professional experience with editorial and financial independence and a DIY mentality. Through int...
Enchufe.tv, an online comedy series that satirizes Ecuadorian idiosyncrasies and local urban cult... more Enchufe.tv, an online comedy series that satirizes Ecuadorian idiosyncrasies and local urban culture, became the most popular online TV series in the country and a regional phenomenon in Latin America. The online show questions cultural stereotypes and social norms, while adapting and parodying transnational audiovisual formats and entertainment genres. Based on interviews and textual analysis, this chapter analyzes Enchufe.tv as a case study of Latin American digital humor, an increasingly relevant phenomenon to understand how cultural globalization and hybridity operate in today's transnational, multimedia entertainment. The case of Enchufe.tv not only reveals the challenges and opportunities of the digital medium for independent audiovisual projects, but also how the limits of critical humor are negotiated in cultural, political, and commercial terms.
Con un tiraje de 70 mil ejemplares, mas de 160 numeros editados y formato de periodico, The Clini... more Con un tiraje de 70 mil ejemplares, mas de 160 numeros editados y formato de periodico, The Clinic es la revista mas vendida de Chile. Desde su creacion en 1998, este quincenario tambien es un referente obligado de la prensa alternativa en Latinoamerica. Sus caracteristicas son el humor descarnado, la escritura irreverente, su rechazo contra todo lo que implico la dictadura militar y su busqueda constante por revelar las contradicciones de la sociedad chilena.
Las revistas Etiqueta Negra y el Malpensante, de Colombia son dos productos culturales periodisti... more Las revistas Etiqueta Negra y el Malpensante, de Colombia son dos productos culturales periodisticos destacados de la region en la ultima decada. Su finalidad es hacer entender un mundo fragmentado y con demasiadas aristas. El autor del articulo da detalles de las producciones.
This dissertation analyzes the discourse of three infotainment television shows built around thei... more This dissertation analyzes the discourse of three infotainment television shows built around their hosts – characters who have gained considerable importance and influence in their respective countries: American Jon Stewart (host of The Daily Show with Jon Stewart); British comedian Sacha Baron Cohen (the actor who incarnates the popular characters Borat, Bruno, and Ali G in the Da Ali G Show), and Peruvian Jaime Bayly (host of the Peruvian TV show El Francotirador/The Sniper). These three shows responded to their specific national, cultural, social, and political contexts, while simultaneously demonstrating important similarities: they parody journalistic genres while questioning traditional journalism authority and arbitrary media norms; they use humor to develop political, social, and cultural critiques; and they revolve around a talented character who is a media celebrity. Drawing upon theory and literature related to media spectacle, infotainment, tabloidization, celebrity, and the carnivalesque, this research analyzes the three media characters’ discourse and critiques within their respective national and cultural contexts in order to understand their role in those societies and how they negotiate discursive power in the public sphere. This analysis also seeks to reveal how Stewart challenges the mainstream news media by exposing the difficulties of debate in the U.S.; how the subaltern voices of Ali G, Bruno, and Borat position Sacha Baron Cohen to confront hegemonic culture and identity; and how ambiguity and contradiction allow Bayly to be a transgressor in a society where entertainment has a particular political history. This research establishes commonalities and differences among these three representative cases in relation to the broader, global phenomenon of satiric infotainment, and introduces the notion of “critical infotainment” to characterize this satiric trend that combines entertainment, comedy, journalism, popular culture, and politics to develop social critique. Critical infotainment is interpreted as a result of and a transgressive reaction to the process of tabloidization and the cult of celebrity in the media spectacle era. Finally, this dissertation includes recommendations for future critical infotainment experiments to fill the gap left by the traditional press in today’s mediascape.
Chapter 6 focuses on Latin American digital satire, analyzing the cases of: 1) Enchufe.tv, an onl... more Chapter 6 focuses on Latin American digital satire, analyzing the cases of: 1) Enchufe.tv, an online comedy series that satirizes Ecuadorian idiosyncrasies and local urban culture; 2) El Pulso de la República, an independent Mexican online satiric news show created in 2012 by comedian Chumel Torres; and 3) Cualca, an Argentinean satiric sketch show focused on gender issues, created by feminist YouTube star Malena Pichot. Critically dialoguing with their respective national contexts and sociopolitical tensions, these cases not only reveal successful models for the development of Latin American independent digital media but also exemplify how cultural globalization and hybridity operate in today’s transnational entertainment and commercial critical humor.
Brozo, el payaso tenebroso (the creepy clown)—a misogynistic, alcoholic, coarse, and marginal cha... more Brozo, el payaso tenebroso (the creepy clown)—a misogynistic, alcoholic, coarse, and marginal character—is one of the most popular and influential “journalists” in Mexico. His show, El Mañanero, has been broadcast on Mexican TV since 2000, when the 71-year regime of the Partido Revolucionario Institucional (PRI) ended. Chapter 4 analyzes the carnivalesque role of Brozo as a subversive and profane court jester able to confront with impunity the elites at the heart of the Mexican power de facto: Televisa, one of the biggest media conglomerates in the world, which has a problematic adhesion to political power. Connecting with the Mexican tradition of clowns and satiric underdogs, this chapter also examines Brozo’s media performance and discursive configuration in relation to the history of institutionalized corruption and violence against journalists in Mexico.
In 2009, Jaime Bayly, one of the most influential TV journalists of the country, announced that h... more In 2009, Jaime Bayly, one of the most influential TV journalists of the country, announced that he wanted to be the first bisexual, impotent, and agnostic president of Peru. He launched an atypical and unofficial electoral campaign, fueled by his irreverent and popular TV show El Francotirador (The Sniper). Bayly’s yearlong virtual campaign increasingly gained importance and local and international media coverage, but he ultimately dropped out of the race a few months before the election. This chapter analyzes how Bayly constructed his ambiguous and contradictory media persona during his 30-year media career and how he capitalized on its political appeal in his electoral run while revealing social tensions in contemporary Peru, a deeply divided society with fragile social institutions, precarious democracy, and a discredited political class. This chapter also illuminates how massive media spectacle became a contested arena to negotiate political power both during and since President...
In the post-truth era, postmodern satiric media have emerged as prominent critical voices playing... more In the post-truth era, postmodern satiric media have emerged as prominent critical voices playing an unprecedented role at the heart of public debate, filling the gaps left not only by traditional media but also by weak social institutions and discredited political elites. Satiric TV in the Americas analyzes some of the most representative and influential satiric TV shows on the continent (focusing on cases in Argentina, Peru, Ecuador, Mexico, Chile, and the United States) in order to understand their critical role in challenging the status quo, traditional journalism, and the prevalent local media culture. It illuminates the phenomenon of satire as resistance and negotiation in public discourse, the role of entertainment media as a site where sociopolitical tensions are played out, and the changing notions of journalism in today’s democratic societies. Introducing the notion of “critical metatainment”—a postmodern, carnivalesque result of and a transgressive, self-referential react...
Peter Capusotto y sus videos is an Argentinean satirical show that criticizes the entertainment i... more Peter Capusotto y sus videos is an Argentinean satirical show that criticizes the entertainment industry in social and political terms. Hosted by actor and comedian Diego Capusotto, the popular show is broadcast on TV Pública, the state channel in Argentina. Through fictional characters and a documentary/journalistic style, Capusotto ridicules celebrity culture and targets social stereotypes. Chapter 5 analyzes the role of the show in deconstructing and questioning key aspects of the local urban identity reflected in popular culture, more specifically in rock music (rock nacional), a genre with a particular evolution and relevance in the country. Through the analysis of Bombita Rodríguez, Violencia Rivas, and Micky Vainilla, some of Capusotto’s most famous characters, this chapter illustrates how the show’s satirical approach demystifies Argentinean identities that exist within the realm of media spectacle while exposing sociopolitical tensions after the 2001 socioeconomic crisis an...
Chapter 2 analyzes Last Week Tonight With John Oliver (LWT), the political news satire show aired... more Chapter 2 analyzes Last Week Tonight With John Oliver (LWT), the political news satire show aired on HBO since 2014. While TDS satirized TV journalism’s coverage of news and TCR parodied the conservative rhetoric in the media, LWT presents investigations, generating in-depth coverage of national and international public interest issues. Chapter 2 analyzes LWT in relation to the academic debates and scholarly work generated by its successful predecessors. By contextualizing and examining the show in relation to the evolution of political infotainment in the United States, I show how LWT not only fills gaps left by mainstream media, but also takes satire to a more international, activist, and investigative level. Because U.S. political infotainment has been internationally influential, this chapter also serves to illuminate the debates about the genre to be applied to the Latin American cases, which have remained academically unexplored.
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