Flood risk through the press: the case of the town of 9 de Abril, Buenos Aires, Argentina

In the context of neoliberalism, cities have taken a prominent role by becoming the center of economic and social life. Various authors consider that the city is the new risk scenario given its rapid and chaotic growth. The urbanization of the floodplain areas of the Greater Buenos Aires Agglomerate was led by the most vulnerable groups due to the low rental value of these lands, the absence of basic services and their floatable condition. Consequently, the risk of flooding fell on these communities. This is the case of the town of 9 de Abril (Esteban Echeverria municipality, Buenos Aires province, Argentina), which being located on the Matanza river floodplain, its inhabitants were repeatedly affected by the overflow of its waters after the occurrence of hydrometeorological events. Therefore, this article focuses on the analysis of how the press media have approached the flood that occurred in October 2019, with the aim of identifying in relation to risk: which dimensions are highlighted and blurred; how the intervening social actors are represented; how to explain the causes that generate these excesses of water; and, what solutions do the authorities propose to mitigate these events.