Seven years after her first publication, Soc feminista i no ho sabia (I Was a Feminist and Didn't Know It) (Rosa dels Vents, 2019), Oltra returns with a collection of first-person articles, drawing from her personal and professional experiences. The author emphasizes the importance of reading and learning through print, despite her career primarily unfolding in audiovisual media, beginning at Canal SET, the television station in Santa Eulàlia de Ronçana.
“"Newspapers offer context and a pause that social media does not provide."
The presenter of Els Matins de TV3 highlighted the value of local media, stating they are 'anything but small,' and recalled the central role newspapers played in family daily life decades ago, from providing information to more domestic uses. This reflection stems from the need to understand how the written press has transitioned from being an essential 'character' to having a different role today.
Oltra argued that, while current newspapers may not offer entirely new information compared to other formats, they provide crucial context. This context allows one to 'understand things, connect, reflect, think, and form a critical opinion,' a characteristic she believes social media lacks. She criticized the model of large tech companies, which aim to retain users for as long as possible by displaying 'tailored' content that is not always the most informative.
“"We have become accustomed to free access to information; we only need to pay for internet. But it's not true that we enter for free, because we have to accept cookies, and then we are the product, paying with our data for them to send us advertising."
The journalist also expressed surprise at the shift in information consumption habits, citing the example of an elderly man who got his news from TikTok. Finally, she reflected on the supposed freeness of information in the digital age, pointing out that users actually pay with their personal data through the acceptance of 'cookies'.
