Neocolonial Media Dynamics in the News About Puerto Rico

This study addresses the controversial issue of United States news media portrayals of Puerto Rico, specifically related to news underrepresentation and misrepresentation during the period of 2000-2015. The research was motivated, in part, by the acknowledged paucity of research about media in Puerto Rico in general, and more specifically, about the role of media in its political life. The overall conceptual orientation to the analysis of media dynamics is presented within the theoretical framework of neocolonialism supported by social construction of reality theory as applied to news. The analysis was guided by the recognized understanding that the gatekeeping functions of the media together with the routine processes of determining what is or is not newsworthy, do not allow for news to be neutral or impartial. The major finding is that through the allied processes of misrepresentation and underrepresentation of news, United States news media portrayals of Puerto Rico have continued to promote the neocolonial media dynamics of globalization by creating and fostering a discourse that sustains and reinforces its condition as dependent and unprepared for independent political status.