Redefining comparative analyses of media systems from the perspective of new democracies

Abstract

Based on one of the most influential proposals intended to analyze media systems from a comparative perspective (Hallin and Mancini, 2004) as well as the criticism it has attracted, this work suggests that the manner in which the different elements of media systems have been operationalized has proven insufficient in the task of contextualizing predominant models of journalistic role performance in parts of the world other than the West. By examining the political, economic, social, cultural and technological factors that have defined the development of journalism in Latin American countries, and specifically in Chile, we propose both widening and redefining the aspects that have to be considered in order to analyze media systems in a comparative fashion, including the reality of new democracies. © 2013 Communication&Society/Comunicación y Sociedad.