Social stigmatization against the mapuche in Bio Bio, Chile. The reality built by the TV news programmes

Abstract

The media have a fundamental role in the social construction of reality and in the stereotyped representation of some sectors of it. This article analyzes the informative treatment of the Bío Bío's TV newscasts regarding indigenous peoples and deals with the social stigma that falls on the indigenous people of the area. More than 95 percent of the news related to the Mapuche people have a negative connotation, associating the comunero as a violent person, oblivious to the dialogue, who does not respect the rule of law or their institutions.

Keywords

• estigma
• medios de comunicación
• representación mediática
• pueblo originario