Revisiting the role of conflict in media events: The Argentine Bicentenary

Abstract

The Argentine Bicentenary, celebrated in 2010, was unique in many aspects, not only since the event is being celebrated every hundred years, but also because this contrast with everything that is written in event-management literature hitherto. The belief that mediated-events are aimed at achieving social cohesion reinforcing the solidarities among attendants was put under the lens of scrutiny. Under certain conditions, the social conflict augments in these types of festivals, first and foremost, whenever it cannot be regulated by the state. This research focuses on the following relevant aspects, The Bicentenary potentiated long-simmering disputes between two contrasting discourses and gazes in the political fields. Distorted images of centenary from one side or another, give the preconditions for the advent of a stronger discourse that revitalize the heritage and helps citizenship understanding what being argentine means. As a mediated-event, bicentenary emphasized on values based on nation-hood and pride for national symbols in citizenship. However, politicians seemed to broaden their profound political discrepancies in this event, contrasting exactly what specialized literature claims.