“Americanisms On the Air: Argentina, the United States and the potential power of mass radio 1941-1945.”

• In Event: La Argentina y los Estados Unidos: circulación de modelos políticos, jurídicos y culturales.

Abstract

In the early 1940s, U.S. radio chains, working in tandem with the U.S. Office of Inter-American Affairs, were eager to gain a stronger foothold in Argentine radio markets. They established collaborative relationships with major stations, including Radio Belgrano and Radio Splendid, emitting entertainment programming that strategists believed would appeal to nationalist tendencies, while still promoting a pro-U.S., Pan Americanist perspective. At the same time, however, Argentina’s military junta had begun to put in place a series of radio regulations that defined radio content along nationalist terms—regulating, for example, use of lunfardo, types of music played on air, foreigner-operated stations, and restricting transmission of international programming. Local radio operators reflected surprise at the government's ability to enforce the new regulations and U.S. officials looked for ways to get around barriers to transmission. By 1943, Argentina had an extensive radio listening audience. However, while the technology was not new, the use of radio propaganda during World War II and the rise of populist politics were bringing new attention to its potential as a political and cultural technology. This paper describes the transnational collaborations and conflicts that emerged as the U.S. government, private corporations and Argentine radio owners extended pro-U.S. and pro-Allied radio programming in Argentina. It pays particular attention to how radio programming adapted in light of the new nationalist regulatory policies, and argues that the transnational power of radio opened broader debates over the ability of states to control (or harness) its power.

Author

• Lisa A Ubelaker Andrade, Universidad De San Andres