Julio Ariza: “Should citizens choose which media to finance in their tax returns?
During his intervention in the programme DANDO CAÑA on El Toro TV, Julio Ariza proposed that “instead of the State giving 100 million to A3 and 100 million to T5 in the Income Tax Declaration, I should be able to choose. Since freedom of information is an essential service for there to be a democracy and for it to truly exist as such. For a democracy to function, it is essential that the formation of public opinion be free, because if it is not, there is no democracy. Not in the strict sense of the word: a people with a critical sense, a capacity for information, etc…”. In other words, that everyone should decide what television they want to spend part of their income tax money on, Julio Ariza points out, “instead of the government giving it to its friends of the moment”. In this way, following the periodsita’s proposal, each Spaniard would finance the newspaper, television, radio or whatever media he or she deems appropriate.
Media free from political powers
“If you want to have a television or media that is free from the control that certain powers have over information, you have to set up a club, as we have done, to set up a journalistic initiative so that the people who come can speak freely,” explains Julio Ariza. This is possible, the journalist adds, thanks to the people who collaborate by contributing what they can and want to support this initiative.
The journalist stresses that, with the contribution of the Income Tax Declaration, “those media that ensure that the system does not break down and are in tune with it” are favoured. For this reason, he encourages viewers to do their bit: “The only thing we can say then is that you make the Club de Amigos possible by making a contribution. We believe in this and we have fun doing it. We cover a social function that today, in Spain, is very important”.
Other television stations that work according to Ariza’s system
As Ariza explains, in Spain, there is no case where a considerable percentage of the costs are covered by a Club of Friends and viewers, and in France, TV Libertés, “which does a spectacular job of information”, lives off its viewers, on the internet. These media also regularly appeal to their viewers to finance their television, and they do so online.
In free-to-air television, as is the case with El Toro TV, there is nothing similar in the world. It is essential for journalists to be able to continue to report, to give a broader perspective and to expose what is happening with depth and knowledge.
