Resumen de Infotainment in news reports: The case of the 2010 Catalan elections

Nereida Carrillo, Carme Ferré Pavia

• This article presents the results of an analysis of infotainment elements in news reporting during the electoral campaign for the 2010 Catalan Parliament. The general aim of the research was to analyse the hybridization of genres in political media content in Catalonia by listing the elements of entertainment that were used in electoral information and studying any patterns that emerged. A sample of 240 units of analysis taken from the Catalan media during the electoral campaign (12–26 November 2010) was evaluated. The general conclusion is that elements of entertainment are used to refer to the topic and the content, and to describe the political actors. There is a tendency to personalize and to use the emotional language that is such a feature of horserace reporting. The article also contributes to the ongoing debates about infotainment in news and its possible influence on public life