Argentina. The Federal Authority for Audiovisual Communication Services, AFSCA, presented a monitoring of how children and adolescents are addressed in the free-to-air TV magazines of the five channels of the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires.
The report consists of a qualitative-quantitative analysis of the representations of children and adolescents in this type of television format, in accordance with the new paradigm of rights.
The monitoring was carried out between April 13 and 17 and was directed by Alicia Ramos, in charge of the Research and Production Directorate of AFSCA, who coordinated the team formed by Myriam Pelazas, Cintia Braccioli, Paula Figueroa and Paola Ramírez Barahona, and had the theoretical contribution of CONACAI.
The magazines analyzed were "American Breakfast" of America; "Vivo en Argentina" and "Una tarde cualquiera" from Public TV"; "What a tomorrow!" from Channel 9; "AM" (Before Noon) by Telefe, "El diario de Mariana" and "Nosotros al mediodía" by Canal 13.
The results presented indicate that 49% of the contents referring to children and adolescents of the programs of general interest of the five open television channels with national scope, are negative, violating the rights of children and adolescents
AFSCA stressed that the monitored television broadcasts "dedicated 27.2% of their programming" to the theme, which was considered "a remarkably high presence in the cycles of the genre", but this data "did not imply a positive treatment, an active participation of children and young people and a role of them as subjects of law". Of this 27.2% of television presence of content involving children and adolescents in programs of general interest, 49% "showed negative aspects", among which the agency detailed: violation of rights to integrity, dignity, identity, privacy and family privacy. Also, that children were subjected to "spectacular" treatments; as objects of entertainment; ridiculed; revictimized, imposing stereotypes and stigmas, and ignoring their right to express themselves through their own voice."
"We at noon" of Channel 13 stood out "as the one that disseminated the highest percentage of negative thematizations" of children and adolescents, said the survey. Meanwhile, the two programs of public TV Channel 7. The program "Vivo en Argentina" approached the issue from a rights perspective and in particular the program Una Tarde Cualquiera, clearly shows the right to voice of adolescents, their proactive, supportive, inclusive role. Both programs "stood out widely for their rights approaches when it comes to presenting issues that concern children and adolescents," the document added.
According to the study, television magazines are characterized by prioritizing news of the show where "conflicts, disputes and family and couple scandals between adults" are addressed, where children "were exposed in situations involving abuse, threats, insults and violence, with sensationalist treatments that sought the impact and in which drama was emphasized."
Likewise, professionals invited as columnists in these spaces "on some occasions based their opinions on conjectures and speculations about the private lives of adults and the conflicts between them, disregarding the fact that this implies the violation of the integrity and dignity of children and adolescents," the report said.
In this line, the research identified the "repeated exhibition of images or videos that allowed the direct or indirect identification" of children involved in conflicts between adults, whose dissemination "causes the revictimization of the same / as".
