The second constituent process influenced this period after the first one, which was rejected by 61.89% of the citizens.
On March 7, the Expert Commission began to operate within the new process. The Commission approved a general text establishing a model similar to the existing one about freedom of expression and freedom of the press. In Article 17-11, the Constitution assures all persons: "The right to freedom of opinion and expression, without prior censorship, in any form and by any means, without prejudice to the subsequent liability for crimes or abuses committed in the exercise of these freedoms, following the law. Any person offended or unjustly alluded to by any means of social communication has the right to have his statement or rectification disseminated free of charge, under the conditions determined by law, using social communication in which such information was broadcast. It also recognizes the right of any natural or juridical person to found, edit and maintain social communication media, regardless of their platform, under the conditions established by law. The law may not establish a state monopoly over the media".
In January, the results of the study "More amplitude, more voices, more democracy" was published, which had been commissioned by President Gabriel Boric on June 1 to three state universities to evaluate the situation of the national information system and the regulation of information pluralism.
The report established the need to create public media, dictate a code of ethics at the state level, and a new design of state advertising distribution with mechanisms to create new media, the promotion of community media, and the protection of journalists.
In December, the National Press Association (ANP) brought together more than 50 experts, including national journalism prizewinners, academics, and media directors. The objective was to analyze the impact of disinformation on democracy. In March, the ANP published a summary of the results, reflections on the media's role in a democracy, and the non-interference of the State with disinformation regulations.
In May of last year, two bills on state protection of journalists were presented in Congress as a result of the attacks suffered by journalists during public demonstrations. As a result, several media outlets suffered attacks between 2019 and 2020, and some were set on fire. The project, which Congress could soon approve, is aligned with the security model advocated by Unesco.
Other relevant cases against freedom of the press during this period:
On January 18, the Concepción Guarantee Court sentenced -for the crime of defamation against public official Rodrigo Daroch- journalist Felipe Soto, editor of the Resumen website, to a suspended sentence of 61 days in prison and a fine of 680 thousand Chilean pesos (US$847) and suspension from public office or position during the time of the sentence. Resumen, like other regional media, has been subjected to judicial harassment by public officials, and on March 20 its offices were attacked, with material damage and an attempted arson attack.
On that day, a CHV journalistic team was attacked by one tenant reporting on a complaint of non-payment of rent in a building.
On April 6, during live news coverage on the Mega channel of the murder of a policeman, journalist Paula de Allende used the expression "paco" -colloquial but considered derogatory- to refer to the Carabineros officer. Although she apologized, her expression caused controversy. As a result, Carabineros General Álex Chaván publicly vetoed the journalist's presence. Furthermore, critical and hostile messages against her multiplied on social networks. Finally, the Mega channel announced the dismissal of the journalist for transgressing the editorial line.
At the same time, negative and stigmatizing messages circulated on social networks against the journalist. Among the most widespread, with more than 100 thousand reproductions, is the publication on Twitter of legislator Gonzalo Carrera. He indicated: "Open TV channels should fire all the octubristas journalists who sowed hatred among Chileans," together with a photographic montage with the face and names of four well-known journalists and the phrase "octubristas who sowed hatred against Carabineros de Chile." In other publications with tens of thousands of visits, images of the journalists were displayed as part of black lists of those they propose to silence.
