Al Jazeera Video: Argentina’s New Media Legislation

There’s been much ado recently about the Argentine government’s legislative effort to reform a media law dating back to the military dictatorship.

Advocates of the legislation, submitted to Congress recently by President Cristina Fernández, say reforms are overdue and that this new bill will allow Argentina to modernize its laws and therefore allow for the advance of technology.

But critics, and there are many of them, say the legislation could curtail free speech by weakening media companies so much that there will be fewer voices and less consumer choice.

As currently written, the bill could also give the Executive Branch too much power over the destiny of media companies. As a result, critics say, the government could indirectly gain control over some types of content.

While Fernández says she wants to break up “monopolistic” media companies, skeptics say she really wants little more than to break up Grupo Clarín, which has been critical of the government and its policies.

They also say there is good reason to think she wants to break up certain media companies and have their parts sold to friends, giving her and her husband, former president Nestor Kirchner, even more influence over content.

The legislation being considered by Congress is lengthy, complicated and exceptionally detailed. Few people have actually read the bill all the way through and most people don’t really  understand all of the bill’s possible consequences.

In this video, the talented folks over at Al Jazeera Argentina have done a nice, balanced job of looking at the controversy and giving it a brief overview.

The bill was rushed through the Lower House of Congress will little serious debate and it is now being debated in the Senate, where it is likely to be approved with some changes. It’s still unclear what the final bill will look like or exactly how it will affect companies like Clarín.

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