Sabor Latino and the militarized male gaze
Between 1981 and 1982, amidst economic recession, state of siege and repression, before even the first public protests against Pinochet, the successful but short-lived variety show Sabor Latino under the direction of Sergio Riesenberg was broadcast on national television, showcasing performances of a number of vedettes mostly from Argentina and Spain. The show reached record audience ratings (80 points) but lasted only a year on the air and was abruptly cancelled under pressure of the Catholic Church. In 2005 the Chilean series “ExpedienTV” dedicated a whole program to Sabor Latino, in the context of a number of television programs that have begun to make public their archival footage of the last forty years (see for example, “TVN 40 Años” and “Chile. Las Imagenes Prohibidas”). In it, Sabor Latino’s director Sergio Riesenberg admits that the junta, anticipating the economic recession, gave him the order to develop a “high impact” show. Pinochet and his advisors had realized about th