_masthead.svg) | |
 Cover toEl Grafico #1, May 1919 | |
| Categories | Sport |
|---|---|
| Frequency | Monthly (2018) |
| Format | Print (1919–2018) Online (2018–present) |
| Founder | Constancio Vigil |
| First issue | May 30, 1919; 106 years ago (1919-05-30) |
| Final issue | January 2018 (print) |
| Company | Revistas Deportivas S.A. |
| Country | Argentina |
| Based in | Buenos Aires |
| Language | Spanish |
| Website | elgrafico.com.ar |
| ISSN | 0017-291X |
El Gráfico is an Argentineonlinesports magazine, originally published by Editorial Atlántida as aprint publication between 1919 and 2018.[1]El Gráfico was released in May 1919 as a weekly newspaper, and then turned to a sports magazine exclusively. It began to be scheduled monthly from 2002, and was discontinued in 2018, continuing only online.[2]
The magazine was nicknamedLa Biblia del deporte ("The Bible of sports") due to its chronicles, notable journalists and collaborators and its photographies.[3]
The foundation of the magazine was an initiative ofUruguayan entrepreneurConstancio C. Vigil, that had foundedAtlántida magazine in 1918 with great success, but thetragic week riots in 1919 stopped the activities. After that event and its consequences, Vigil was persuaded in acquiring his own printing. With the machines and the installations ready, he established "Editorial Atlántida", his own publishing house, headquartered inBuenos Aires.
The first magazine from the recently created publisher wasEl Gráfico, with its #1 being released on 30 May 1919.[4] It was printed intabloid format (57 x 39 cm) with a great amount of photographs. The predominance of the image was the distinctive mark of the magazine since its launching, clearly explicitly in its name ("The Graphic" in Spanish)
The first cover showed a children parade in front ofCasa Rosada for the 119th. anniversary of theMay Revolution.El Gráfico's first director was Aníbal Vigil, a journalist and also sportsman. Vigil travelled toParis as special correspondent to cover the1924 Summer Olympics, being probably the first sports journalist of Argentina attending an Olympic Game.[5]
Other publications by Editorial Atlántida that followedEl Gráfico wereBilliken (1919, a magazine for children) and a female publication –Para Ti– in 1922.[6]
In the cover of the first number ofEl Gráfico appeared the legendIlustración Semanal Argentina at the bottom of the picture. Indeed, the magazine only contained photos and epigraphs which had originated its name ("The Graphic" in English) and at first the publication was not related to sports covering all sort of news and events. Alberto Palazzo (under the pseudonymGarabito) was the first photographer of the magazine.
Although not a sports magazine, the #5 was the first to include afootball chronicle on its cover, a match betweenArgentina andUruguay national teams.GoalkeeperAmérico Tesoriere was the first sportman to appear on the cover (#158, July 1922). But it was not until 1925 (#333) whenEl Gráfico became a full sports magazine.[5]
One of the first notable collaborators was Alfredo Rossi (a)Chantecler, who was probably the first sports journalist with an analytic view of the game.[7] His chronicles about football players became memorable. Rossi joined in 1925 and remained to 1941[8] From the 1930s to the 1960s, Félix Frascara and Ricardo Lorenzo (mostly known for his pseudonymBorocotó) highlighted as the main journalists of the magazine.Borocotó (pseudonym for Ricardo Lorenzo) wrote about several sports such as football,basketball,cycling (his favourite), androwing in his characteristic simple style. The column "Apiladas" was his most famous creation.[9] Félix Frascara's column aboutboxing, "Contragolpes", became his distinctive mark.[10]
In 1959,Dante Panzeri joined to the staff. Panzeri opposed to the excessive use oftactics in football, withJuan Carlos Lorenzo,Osvaldo Zubeldía, Argentino Geronazzo and José D'Amico as some trainers that were accused of being excessively obsessed with tactics.[11] Despite Panzeri's critical style (which has remained as a strong influence for journalists that succeed him),[12]El Gráfico experienced a strong decrease in its sales, from 250,000 sold to only 90,000 during those years.[5]
After the1962 FIFA World Cup held in Chile, Panzeri left his charge inEl Gráfico, after he was pressed to publish advertisements of then Ministry of Economy,Alvaro Alsogaray. He refused alleging the spirit of the magazine would be distorted if he had agreed to that.,[13] On the other hand, sales decreased from 230,000 to 78,000. To stop that decline, Aníbal and Constancio Vigil brought back Carlos Fontanarrosa, appointing him as director of the magazine.
Under Fontanarrosa's direction,El Gráfico changed its editorial policy, focusing on the most recent news and events. The latest technological advancement were acquired to improve the quality of the magazine; Journalists Julio César Pasquato (a)Juvenal (who had gaining prestige working inLa Razón) and Emilio Lafferranderie (a)El Veco –considered a successor ofBorocotó– were added to the staff. Other journalists hired were Osvaldo Ardizzone, Héctor Onesime andPepe Peña. From then on,El Gráfico covered the most notable sports events with a rich array of photographies to show them to readers. After that change of direction,El Gráfico recovered and sales increased. Fontanarrosa remained in his charge until 1977 when he quit.[11]
The best selling era ofEl Gráfico was during the1986 FIFA World Cup when Argentina crowned champion, with 690,998 sold. The second place in the ranking of all-time best seller magazine is for the1978 FIFA World Cup with 595,924.Diego Maradona was the sports man with the most appearances on the cover: 134, followed byDaniel Passarella (58) andNorberto Alonso (54).[14]
In 1998, sports communication companyTorneos y Competencias (that had exclusive rights to broadcast theArgentine Primera División matches due to an agreement with theAFA) boughtEl Gráfico.[15] The magazine was published weekly by "Revistas Deportivas S.A." until April 2002, when its frequency switched to monthly.[6] The last monthly edition was in January 2018, featuringIndependiente managerAriel Holan on its cover.[16][17] Since then,El Gráfico has been continued its run on internet exclusively.
Some of the most notable collaborators of the magazine during its near 100 years of existence were:[14][18][3]
El Gráfico is widely the most regarded sports magazine in Argentina and Latin America. The magazine was nicknamedLa Biblia del deporte ("The Bible of sports") due to its chronicles, notable journalists and collaborators and its photographies.[3]
The magazine famously underlinedcreole-style football as opposed to the British style of football that had been introduced to Argentina in the late 19th century. It was baptisedLa Nuestra ("Our Own"). Researcher Eduardo Archetti stated about that:
The "criollo" style is based on elegance and improvisation while the British expresses force and discipline. This opposite values are featured as alternative styles which reflect different masculine virtues.[27]
When the printed edition ofEl Gráfico was closed, some former collaborators and journalists left their impressions on that:
The 1990s destroyed culture in Argentina, or at least, a significant part of it. And that shattering also blown over the habit of reading
— Diego Fucks, former collaborator of the magazine, about the closure ofEl Gráfico[25]
WhenEl Gráfico was acquired by "Torneos", the magazine lost credibility
— Ernesto Cherquis Bialo, longtime collaborator of the magazine in an interview in January 2018[15]
Not only wasEl Gráfico popular for those reasons, but it had a significant impact on the role of women in sports. Before the beginning of the twentieth century both girls and women were not given the same amount of exposure in the media as men were. Their chances and abilities to play were hindered as they were overshadowed by the male-dominated world of media and sport. Fortunately, after major changes to women's uniforms were implemented by the 1920s,El Gráfico played a key role in the creation of new images of women and sports.[28] Throughout this time period the magazine published many photographs of women athletes. In 1919 the third edition featured women tennis players on the cover, and throughout the 1930s about 15 percent ofEl Gráfico's front cover pages featured women.[28] The magazine not only displayed the women in action playing on the fields, but it featured their accomplishments within the contents of the pages. Another way it aided in displaying these women was by identifying the women's club memberships. Although a small and simple act, this highlighted their participation in the sporting community on a larger scale.
This all helped to "normalize the idea of sportswomen", asEl Gráfico "presented women as active subjects instead of passive objects and highlighted their physical prowess instead ofonly their beauty", ultimately disrupting the visual culture of Argentina in the 1920s and 1930s.[29] Despite the fact that this amount of exposure still represented a minority compared to that of men at the time, it is still considered a breakthrough as this representation exceeded that of any similar publication in Argentina and beyond.
Media related toEl Gráfico at Wikimedia Commons