Mediatization and sociopolitical crisis in Peru. Imaginaries and practices of social actors

The article analyzes the imaginaries and practices of social actors in the context of mediatization and sociopolitical crisis in Peru. The study is based on a qualitative approach, whose method is grounded theory; semi-structured/in-depth interviews were conducted with 24 key informants in four regions of the macrosouth of Peru, as well as a documentary analysis; qualitative data were processed using Atlas.ti v.22 software. As a result, it is highlighted that the media builds symbolic power in the actors' social imaginary in accordance with political and economic power, which is reflected in the degeneration and crisis of political parties, disenchantment, and citizen apathy regarding politics, leading to a sociopolitical crisis. It is concluded that, in a political-media system, with government intervention in the media and the instrumentalization of journalists, the mediatization of politics increases, with the resulting polarization and ideological radicalization, and civic education configures in the instituting/radical imaginary of the actors to rebuild the nation-State that produces a diverse, plural, and inclusive community of destiny.