El periodismo ante el movimiento vecinal y las transformaciones urbanas en el área metropolitana de Barcelona: De la Ley de Prensa (1966) al primer gobierno municipal democrático (1979-1983)

Abstract

This research analyzes the representation of the Catalan neighborhood movement in the metropolitan area of Barcelona in both general and neighborhood press between 1966 and 1983. It focuses on two key periods: the end of Francoism, characterized by intense socio-political mobilization and increasing repression, and the transition to democracy, marked by the progressive establishment of the autonomous system and political parties, the effects of the economic crisis, and the emergence of growing political disenchantment. Through a diachronic content analysis, the study examines published news on the issues arising from demographic growth and speculative urban expansion, as well as their negative effects on guaranteeing the right to housing and the city. It also analyzes news featuring social actors outside the centers of political and economic power, particularly the neighborhood movement, identifying how their actions were represented and tracking the chronological evolution of the attributes assigned to them. The sample of media outlets includes La Vanguardia, Diario de Barcelona, El Correo Catalán, Mundo Diario, Avui, El Periódico, and the neighborhood magazine Grama, with an analysis of issues published during two selected weeks per year between 1966, the year the Press Law was passed, and 1983, the end of the first democratic municipal legislature. The study aims to determine how the press represented the neighborhood movement and whether these representations reflected its role as an active and counter-hegemonic social actor against the Francoist dictatorship. The findings show that although media coverage was generally favorable to the movement’s demands, a predominantly androcentric, dehumanized, and elitist perspective limited civic participation and, after the end of the dictatorship, contributed to the social demobilization of non-parliamentary actors. Ultimately, this led to the marginalization of social movements by the new democratic political elites and weakened public trust in the media.

Date of Award	29 May 2025
Original language	Spanish
Supervisor	Pedro Molina Rodríguez-Navas (Director) & Núria Simelio Solà (Director)