For decades, the media They have been hiding the origin of a profile of criminals in Spain. This fact is not accidental, but is due to a manipulation strategy that the PP and the PSOE agreed on more than 20 years ago.
On October 1, 2003, a document prepared that summer on the Informative Treatment of Immigration in the Audiovisual Media. It would begin by applying itself to public television (RTVE), but the objective was for it to be a roadmap for the rest of the private media but dependent on public subsidies. One of the main doctrines of this pact was not to include ethnic group, skin color, country of origin, religion or culture when tragic events occurred.
Zapatero takes another step
Years later, with José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero in the Government, the Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs released the guide for all media, in which they even urged the State Security Forces and Corps to follow these guidelines. In this one, too behaviors such as speaking in masculine in reference to a majority began to be criticizedsince, as they defended, “it made women invisible.”
«1) Journalistic militancy: towards an enriching multiculturalism for all. The enhancement of positive information. 2) Whether public or private, they must collaborate in the public task of integration of immigrantsdisseminating information about migration and its context, as well as contributing to the climate of social dialogue,” were some of the points that the Government intended to impose.
Regarding the “recommendations” to the police forces and audiovisual companies, they had a great impact on reject generalizations and singling out minority groups: “Avoid simplification when providing information to the media, as well as dramatization or condemnatory presumption.”
«Being the first piece in the information chain They must address immigration as an issue and not as a problem“, without governing the problematic circumstances, but assuming the normality of the international movement of people,” they stressed, urging audiovisual companies to collaborate in the public task of integrating immigrants by disseminating information about migration and its context and contributing to the climate of dialogue. social.
Point 4 is where PP and PSOE are clearer, since They demand avoiding the association between immigration and violence, conflict, marginality, disorder or crime. They also ask that the “utilitarian treatment” of immigration due to low birth rates or to fill jobs.
In the second part of the guide, they already introduce practical cases to highlight what words and expressions should be used to avoid generating rejection towards certain ideas, thus seeking to indoctrinate society. For example, they prohibited any association of immigration with crime, the positioning of the immigrant as a victim or positive discrimination. On the contrary, They demanded to remember the principle of presumption of innocence—which today is ignored with the Comprehensive Law on Gender Violence—, emphasize the right to equality of all or build more representative discourses of the migrant community.
They also made a distinction between bad and good practice. Talking about an avalanche or assault would be frowned upon, and it would be advisable to use flatter expressions such as displaced persons or passengers.. Behind all this macro agreement sealed between the PP and the PSOE were the main general media in the country, including the three largest communication agencies: Europa Press, EFE y Servimedia.