Narrativas de Desinformación en el Golfo San Matías

The document analyzes a coordinated communication strategy involving the Argentine government, YPF, and a network of newly created digital media outlets to legitimize the Vaca Muerta Oil Sur (VMOS) project. It argues that these actors use 'pink slime' tactics—creating low-impact local news sites funded by advertising—to frame fossil fuel expansion as essential for regional progress and employment while omitting environmental risks and legal controversies. The study highlights the derogation of Law 3308, which previously protected the Golfo San Matías, and the use of the RIGI framework to protect corporate interests for 30 years.

• The Vaca Muerta Oil Sur (VMOS) project involves a pipeline exceeding 400 km from Añelo (Neuquén) to Punta Colorada (Río Negro), a petroleum port, and two liquefied natural gas (LNG) ships for export.
• Environmental protections for the region were dismantled in September 2022 when the Río Negro Legislature repealed Law 3308, which had prohibited hydrocarbon exploration and infrastructure in the Golfo San Matías since 1999.
• A network of at least 12 recently created digital media outlets (between 2024 and 2025) operates as 'repeaters' of pro-extractivist discourse, using paid advertising to achieve massive reach despite having very few organic followers.
• YPF employs a strategy of 'greenwashing' and strategic omission, spending over 53 billion pesos on advertising in the first half of 2025 to build corporate legitimacy without directly addressing the socio-environmental conflicts of its projects.
• The provincial government of Río Negro promotes the project as a source of progress and employment, despite an asymmetric benefit distribution where a 1 billion dollar canon over 13 years is agreed upon against multi-billion dollar investments.
• The province's adherence to the Regime for Incentive to Large Investments (RIGI) grants corporate privileges and prevents the state from modifying tax conditions or introducing new levies for 30 years.
• The narrative of 'controlled progress' is contradicted by environmental data, such as the recording of at least 2,049 environmental incidents in Vaca Muerta in 2021, averaging 5.6 incidents per day.

APA

Di Giacomo, F., Newell, P., Ata, S., & Coll, M. R. (2025). Narrativas de Desinformación en el Golfo San Matías. Roots. https://poweredbyroots.org/media/pages/highlights/fellowship-for-countering-disinformation/216062d850-1781746806/narrativas-de-desinformacion-en-el-golfo-san-matias.pdf

Chicago

Di Giacomo, Fabricio, Phil Newell, Sandra Ata, and María Rosario Coll. Narrativas de Desinformación en el Golfo San Matías. Roots, 2025. https://poweredbyroots.org/media/pages/highlights/fellowship-for-countering-disinformation/216062d850-1781746806/narrativas-de-desinformacion-en-el-golfo-san-matias.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Di Giacomo |first1=Fabricio |last2=Newell |first2=Phil |last3=Ata |first3=Sandra |last4=Coll |first4=María Rosario |title=Narrativas de Desinformación en el Golfo San Matías |publisher=Roots |date=November 2025 |url=https://poweredbyroots.org/media/pages/highlights/fellowship-for-countering-disinformation/216062d850-1781746806/narrativas-de-desinformacion-en-el-golfo-san-matias.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{digiacomo2025narrativas, author = {Di Giacomo, Fabricio and Newell, Phil and Ata, Sandra and Coll, María Rosario}, title = {{Narrativas de Desinformación en el Golfo San Matías}}, institution = {Roots}, year = {2025}, month = nov, url = {https://poweredbyroots.org/media/pages/highlights/fellowship-for-countering-disinformation/216062d850-1781746806/narrativas-de-desinformacion-en-el-golfo-san-matias.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }