Argentina has the highest newspaper circulation in Latin America and the biggest daily newspapers are the popular Clarin and the more high-brow La Nacion. Both newspapers however are in a vendetta at the moment with the Kirchner government, which sometimes seems to cloud their judgement a bit.
The Kirchner government is far from perfect and like most presidencies since the return of democracy in 1983 is covered in scandals and not-so-subtle attempts at self-enrichment. Both Clarin and La Nacion however were more or less loyal supporters of the Videla regime and to this day often seem to suggest that the dictatorship was unfortunately necessary to keep order. This notwithstanding the 30,000 people who disappeared during the dirty war or Proceso, again depending on your viewpoint. It makes it hard sometimes to decide whom to believe.
The fact that the current government is for the first time trying to limit the enormous media power that both media groups have built up under a law passed by the military resulting in them owning many other papers en tv stations, will not help the governments popularity in the press either. Both Media Groups are also themselves intertwined, as for example in their joint owning of the biggest newsprint mill in Argentina.
Lately I have been getting a lot of my online local news from www.infobae.com, which seems to have found some middle ground in their reporting. Forgetting the gutter press of Cronica en the papers owned by the aforementioned two groups, like La Razon and part of Pagina 12, that leaves the financially orientated Cronista and Ambito Financiero and the small La Prensa as almost the only viable print alternatives.
At the moment I still prefer to buy La Nacion most frequently, but I am always open to suggestions. What’s your favourite Argentine daily newspaper?
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