Television, Politics, and the Transition to Democracy in Latin America

The first book about television and electoral politics in Latin America, Television, Politics, and the Transition to Democracy in Latin America summarizes the relationships of the media and politics in Latin America, discusses television's role in political change throughout the world, and assesses the history of broadcast media and politics in Latin America.Case studies on the 1988 Chilean plebiscite that decided that free elections would be resumed and on three presidential campaigns - Mexico 1988, Brazil 1989, and Argentina 1989 - illustrate television as the most important medium of political information and the most powerful communications instrument in political campaigns.Twelve media analysts from the United States and Latin America examine the power and limitations of television in the new democratic era, drawing on new public opinion data, viewer surveys, and content analysis to interpret a subject too often investigated only through anecdote or impression. With the return to democracy, the ways in which public opinion is formed, measured, and reported will be crucial in determining whether democracy succeeds or fails.