Philosopher and political analyst Fernando Buen Abad. Photo: José Negrón Valera/Sputnik.
A little over two years ago, the documentary La Dictadura del Algoritmo (“The Algorithm Dictatorship”) premiered in Cuba, which explores the complex relationship between politics and new technologies. The film explains the way in which social media platforms shape public opinion in Latin America and calls for a critical analysis of this phenomenon.
A phrase from the Canadian philosopher Marshall McLuhan opens the documentary and gives shape to the debate that is making headlines these days: “Each new technology creates a new human environment.”
This is the starting point for Sputnik’s interview with the philosopher and expert in political communication, Fernando Buen Abad, who was in Caracas for the seminar Media Monopolies in the World, held at the International University of Communications.
“Follow the money and you will know where the ideas come from”
Buen Abad highlights the importance of understanding the map of media monopolies globally, a concentration that has accelerated since the publication of the McBride Report in 1980. This report warned about the dangers of media concentration and its impact on democracy. According to Buen Abad, in 1980 there were about 600 media owners, while today there are only nine or ten, which has caused “episodes of attacks against democracy, in every sense.”
“In essence, the report warns that the process of accelerated monopolistic concentration [of media] is a threat against democracy, because concentration of communication mechanisms in the hands of a few people implies silencing the vast majority,” the philosopher said. “And that equation became a great dilemma until the appearance of the internet, when we entered another phase of the phenomenon.”
The influence of these monopolies is not limited to communication, but is intertwined with the military and financial industries. This triangle of power, according to Buen Abad, makes decisions that directly affect people’s lives, from the products they consume to the information they receive. “In essence, the report warns that the process of accelerated monopolistic concentration is a threat against democracy.”
Semiotic guerrilla and the dispute over meaning
In the context of Latin America, Buen Abad emphasizes that media strategies are always “about a dispute for meaning. There is a constant struggle at this level, the interests of one sector versus the interests of another.” The most obvious case, in the opinion of the expert, occurred during the COVID-19 pandemic, where certain media promoted misinformation about vaccines, negatively affecting public perception towards countries such as Cuba and Russia and favoring certain US and European economic interests.
Furthermore, Buen Abad mentions that despite the monopolistic concentration in the message that is transmitted to the population, there are always spaces to fight and win these “asymmetric wars for meaning.” For this, the notion of “semiotic guerrilla” is essential, which is a form of media resistance to counteract media hegemony through small, but effective, communication actions. A clear example is Venezuela, where, despite great media efforts to discredit its political and ideological heritage, the figures of Bolívar and Chávez continue to be deeply loved and respected by the people.
The ‘punishment vote’ as a manipulation strategy
One of the most relevant issues mentioned by Buen Abad is the psychological warfare by hegemonic media in countries that are the object of US interests. This strategy seeks to manipulate voters through the promise of radical change if they vote against progressive governments.
“Today we know very well that in Venezuela and Mexico a media-based psychological warfare is being carried out, calling for ‘punishment vote,'” Buen Abad highlighted. “According to this warfare, the punishment vote means that to the extent that you respect the vote, you are going to push for a change. So it sounds very tempting, because it turns out that I am not so happy with the promises that were made and not fulfilled, so now I will punish the government with my vote. And that punishment vote also offers an illusion of hope and change. You can see the results of that strategy in Argentina right now.”
According to Buen Abad, this tactic is effective because it exploits the discontent and hopelessness of the population, offering an illusion of hope and change, without offering the possibility of critically evaluating the context, as it happens for Venezuela, where the United States has imposed more than 900 unilateral coercive measures, which has gravely affected the quality of life of the people.
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The impossibility of the leftist ‘Big Brother’
To resist these hegemonic strategies, Buen Abad advocates for alternative communication that truly represents the interests and struggles of the people. He criticizes the technological and semantic dependence on current commercial formats of media and social media, and proposes a revolution in the production of media content. “The content has to come from the base, from the grassroots struggles,” he stresses.
“I have the hope that the hegemonic, dominant communication models, even those that seem to make the most progress today, will be thrown into chaos,” he adds. “Because what we are seeing in the media, on social media, on television, on radio and others, in the entire media or mediation structure, the agenda of these media is not the agenda of the people in struggle. I believe that when a sector of the population does not pay heed to thee media’s language, their vocabulary, their syntax of political reference, a great mistrust will start building up.”
Buen Abad also rejects the possibility that the alternative media from below would resemble the same Big Brother that is being fought. He believes that the narrative models of commercial media are designed to inhibit critical thinking and prioritize form over content. “They are narrative models to inhibit thinking, they are anesthetics for thinking,” he opines.
(Sputnik) by José Negrón Valera
Translation: Orinoco Tribune
OT/JRE/SC
José Negrón Valera
Venezuelan anthropologist and writer, researcher in unconventional warfare, counterterrorism and information operations. Author of the books 'A loft for Cleopatra', 'Kings and dinosaurs' and 'Knowledge and power: the process of academic renewal at the UCV (1967-1970)'. National Literature Award "Stefanía Mosca" 2018.
