Politics and Balls: Thematical interests of users of the leader news websites in Argentina in 2016

Abstract

This paper examines the thematic preferences of online news consumers in Argentina during 2016, through a mixed method that integrates content analysis with in-depth interviews. The quantitative analysis, carried out in seven of the most important news sites in Argentina, indicates that during the year 2016 the news on politics and sports were the most viewed, although this interest was not constant: notes about the government of President Mauricio Macri and allegations of corruption cases were dominant among the most widely read during the first half of the year, while in the second part of the year this position was filled by news of the athletes’ achievements. Gender violence, a topic of incipient importance in the public agenda, occupied only an average of 4% of the most viewed news, although the data show peaks of interest during the moments of greater mobilization on this issue. In-depth interviews suggest that reception is related to policy issues and has to do with the citizen role of readers and receptors; this informational practice is often associated with negative emotions such as frustration, anger and anguish. On the contrary, the consumption of sports information is performed for recreational purposes, and has a positive emotional load linked to the identification with athletes and fun.