La reconversión tecnológica y empresarial en un período consolidado: El caso de “La Vanguardia”

This thesis seeks to aproach the changes and factors of viability of the press during the period compreended among 1970 and 1990, through the case of study of “La Vanguardia” newspaper, of Barcelona, that constitutes a paradigma of the journals of the modernity. These newspapers, generally centenarians, presented towards 1980 common traits of technical and conceptual obsolescency, as well as difficulties for renovation and competition with the new headers.

Paralelly, the studied period was characterized by housing a set of revolutionary transformations in the world of the press that affected not only the methods of production and technical production, but also the design of newspapers. The present investigation tries to establish the factors that explain the viability of certain headers to the detriment of others.

The main conclusion that emerges from the research is that technological modernization was a necessary condition, but not sufficient, since it required previous or parallel processes of rationalization of business, productive and financial structures to ensure the viability of newspapers.