The fourth era of political communication in Mexico: structural and contextual aspects

Abstract

Democratic transitions provide additional insight into how media systems, journalism, government communication, and digital platforms combine into what the authors call the B‑side of political communication studies. By that, they assume different structural and historic characteristics that guide the objectives and theoretical perspectives from which political communication is typically examined. Thus, this paper makes a distinction between mainstream political communication studies based on the global North and less popular or normalized political communication ecosystems like Mexico. In an effort to build a coherent narrative for the evolution of Mexico’s political communication system from 1960 onwards, this paper introduces four different eras through which regulation, political inclusion, and technological changes can be analyzed. A first era (1960–1994) in which an authoritarian state mostly controlled the flow of information. A second era (1995–2006) in which television networks flipped the script and became dominant in an increasingly competitive electoral market. A third era (2007–2018) of media legitimacy crisis and digital disruption. Finally, a fourth era (2018–to date) is marked by news audience atomization, systemic violence against journalism, and state disinformation. The authors conclude by presenting a list of trends that will shape the future of political communication in the region. These include institutionalized post-truth, asymmetric consumer logic, and the use of moral convictions for political purposes.