Agenda setting, disputes and construction of the Gaucho on the Internet

Abstract

The article, on the basis of the examination of a site about Gaucho culture, raises questions about the construction of cultural identities in the media, and in particular on the Internet. In the part of the research entitled “Gaucho cultural identity in the social uses of the Internet” presented here, there are three cases of mediatic agenda setting that are reinforced by the dynamics of production and uses of the Internet: the involvement with the mini-series A casa das Sete Mulheres, the boycott of the comedy Casseta & Planeta and the discussions generated by a homosexual manifestation during a traditionalist event in the state capital of Rio Grande do Sul. Anchored in the concepts of mediatization, strategies for establishing identities and the social uses of media, the text presents a reflection about the ways in which identity experimentation, strengthened by the Internet. is acting toward the re-elaboration of the meaning attributed to the Gaucho identity since its mediatic construction.