FOTP 2013 Full Report

with the Observer, and the company has suffered. Also in 2010, Antigua and Barbuda’s onlyother daily newspaper, Antigua Sun, was forced to close down because of financial constraints.There are no government restrictions on the internet, which was accessed by 84 percentof the population in 2012.ArgentinaStatus: Partly FreeLegal Environment: 13Political Environment: 23Economic Environment: 16Total Score: 52Survey Edition 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012Total Score, Status 47,PF 49,PF 49,PF 51,PF 50,PFIn 2012, tensions increased between the government of President Cristina Fernández de Kirchnerand critical media outlets, particularly those belonging to Clarín Group, Argentina’s main mediaconglomerate. This hostility has increased media polarization and hampered the public’s abilityto access unbiased information.The constitution provides for freedom of the media and of expression. In a positive step,libel and slander offenses for journalists were decriminalized in 2009 and are no longerpunishable by imprisonment. Fines can still be issued in civil cases. In December 2012, the headof the Federal Revenue Administration (AFIP), Ricardo Echegaray, sued journalists MatíasLongoni and Luis Majul for almost $275,000 each in separate cases, claiming that they hadsullied his reputation. Longoni’s reporting on irregularities in the awarding of subsidies by astate office Echegaray previously headed had formed the subject of a 2011 book, while Majulhad accused the AFIP of exerting financial pressure on his production company. The pressfreedom group Argentine Journalism Forum (FOPEA) denounced Echegaray’s suits as abuses ofthe judicial system.In 2009, the legislature passed the Law on Audiovisual Communication Services, alsoknown as the Ley de Medios (Media Law), which aimed to diversify ownership in the heavilyconcentrated broadcast sector. Many press analysts agree with its basic goals, but allegations thatthe law would be used against the government’s media opponents spurred lawsuits that initiallyhindered its implementation. The overall legislation took effect in September 2010, but Article161, which would force certain media companies—most notably Clarín Group—to relinquishlicenses and sell off assets, remained suspended pending a Supreme Court ruling on a challengefiled by Clarín that year. In December 2012, the company won a last-minute ruling that againdelayed application of the article. Critics have also raised concerns over the law’s provisionswith regard to appointments to the broadcast regulatory body, which are heavily weighted in thepresident’s favor.In December 2011, Congress passed two contentious pieces of legislation affecting themedia. The first, an amendment to the antiterrorism law, increased penalties for terrorist acts. Aninterpretation of the law by the head of Argentina’s Financial Investigations Unit stated thatnews outlets could be held accountable under the expanded clauses if they published material68