Bajo, I have a couple questions before I can understand this issue fully.
1. Does the Argentine government use taxpayer money to pay for government advertisements? This would include subsidizing popular TV events in which the only advertisements are pro-government ads.
2. If the answer to #1 is Yes do you think it is appropriate for a government (any government) to use tax payer money to promote itself?
3. Didn't this government pull all of its advertising money from Clarín when they started running stories that were contra what Cristina wanted to do? If I remember correctly, Clarín was a friend of Nestor originally and got large sums of advertising support from him and Cristina.
4. Doesn't this government direct all of its advertising money to the press that supports what Cristina wants to do?
5. Do you think it is a good idea for governments to have any "control" over the press, or is it better to have a free press that is free to write whatever opinion they feel is relevant and whatever opinion the public feels is relevant?
I'm asking these questions in good faith since the country from which I come doesn't engage in these activities. My government isn't in business for itself and I find government manipulation and control of the press an aberration in a supposedly free society.
With all due respect, you're not asking but making many statements.
I have some first hand information about how does the media and the "pauta oficial" works because I worked on a case where an important countryside newspaper was claiming regairding a cut of the pauta oficial after they start a campain of discredit against the local government. However, I have to be carefull because of my professional secret duties.
La pauta oficial, it means, the advertising that the state pays, normally is regarding edicts, not regarding to make publicity about how good they are (I m going to refer about this later).
As you know we are a federal country as the US.
Newspapers in Argentina aren t profitable because Clarin and La Nacion owns the only factory of paper of the country and they have cheaper cost then the other newspapers.
For this reason Clarin grown so much. Remember, the issue about the media law is that it is an anti trust law and Clarin has to propose a plan of selling its media. It means that they cannot own the only paper factory, the mayor newspaper, many TV Channels, the biggest cable tv company, a big internet company, etc, etc.
Comming back from the clarification, newspapers aren t profitable enough because Clarin sells the paper too expensive to its competitors, So, the newspapers needs the pauta oficial to make profit. It gives too much power to the government involved. And I use the word involved because it happens with the province newspapers against the Governors too. So, you can lot slightly assert that the federal government does it, because all the politicians do it.
However, Perfil claim at Federal Courts that they were discriminated on the pauta oficial the government give them and they won at Supreme Court. So, the system works.
Clarin on the other hand, never claimed at Court for the pauta oficial. Supreme Court precedents are enforzable when they are about a clear federal matter like freedom of press is.
I m going to be even more clear: If Cristina K discriminates Clarin with the pauta oficial, it is easy to win at Federal Courts. And this is the assert of a lawyer who litigates at Federal Courts every single day.
However, Clarin takes 20% of the pauta oficial.
The pauta oficial is the 9% of the market of advertizing.
http://www.diariobae.com/diario/2012/06/06/13364-el-grupo-clarin-manipula-la-informacion-sobre-la-pauta-oficial.html
You mentioned the government using tax money to pay its own advertizing. I wonder how much money spends the PRO on facebook self advertizing. And I wonder, why everything in this city is painted in yellow? They do it with my tax money right? And yellow is the color of the PRO like yellow and blue is the color of Boca Juniors. I wonder how much money the PRO spend from my taxes to organize the cacerolazos on FB? This is corruption.
You know, when I claimed at local Court for discrimination against expats at the BA City tango contest, the media protected Macri in an obvious way. Macri pays back with this ridiculous attempt of law.
I use the word ridiculous because press freddom is a federal matter and the law he attemp to enact is looking to protect a monopoly strong enough to attempt a coup against this government. A monopoly who made fall many other governments in the past.
If you are honest, you should agree that monopolies are evil.
Regards
Comming back to your asserts about the ideal system, I believe that the anti trust media law is going to improved the freedom of press.
