Media personality Mario Pergolini has reaffirmed his stance that traditional television is dead, while revealing plans for a potential 2027 project featuring a robotic co-host. Pergolini, a central figure in Argentine media for three decades, is currently weighing the future of his show, Otro día perdido, amid a shift toward hybrid digital formats.
Mario Pergolini has spent thirty years at the center of the Argentine media ecosystem, moving from radio at age 17 to pioneering streaming platforms. He recently doubled down on his most famous industry critique, telling an interviewer that he is the founder of the phrase the television is dead and maintaining that he really believes that it is.
The Shift from Dead to Zombie Television
For Pergolini, the traditional television paradigm has become a restrictive tool that speaks to a very small segment of people. He argues that the industry must move toward hybrid content that blends high-end production with the immediacy of platforms like TikTok, Instagram, and YouTube, noting that audiences no longer come to the networks.
However, the nature of this “death” is evolving. While he previously declared the medium dead, he now suggests a transition into a new, stranger phase. According to reporting from eltrecetv, Pergolini stated that television is now a zombie, implying that while the old form has passed, a lingering, transformed version persists.
Otro día perdido and the 2027 Robot Proposal
This philosophical shift is manifesting in Pergolini’s current professional uncertainty. Discussing the future of his cycle, Otro día perdido
, he expressed doubt about his own stamina, joking that he wasn’t sure if he would even make it to December. When pressed by colleagues on whether the show would return next year, he was blunt: I don’t know if I have it in me to do another year.
Despite this, he isn’t abandoning the screen entirely but wants to pivot toward a more serious and cultural format. His vision for 2027 involves a stripped-back setting—him alone in a chair—paired with a technological twist.
I want to do it with a robot. A robot like that, chatting like I do in the morning at Vorterix with a robot. And that the robot be seated. Mario Pergolini, via eltrecetv
ATO and the Epidemic of Loneliness
Pergolini’s interest in robotics extends beyond entertainment into social utility. He is developing ATO, a device for older adults designed to combat what he describes as a “tremendous” epidemic of loneliness. The project utilizes artificial intelligence and natural language models to provide conversational companionship rather than mere technical assistance.
The impetus for ATO was deeply personal. Pergolini recounted the frustration his mother faced when she lost her sight later in life. Despite being an autonomous woman who painted and read, the transition to blindness was grueling.
My mom went blind at a point in her life. She was already old, but she lived alone. She was very autonomous. She painted, read a lot. And when she went blind it was very frustrating. You can’t learn to be blind as an adult. We tried, but it was very difficult. My mom was angry. Mario Pergolini, via La Nacion
AI, Education, and the Robotic Future
The integration of AI into daily life is, for Pergolini, an inevitability that demands a total overhaul of the education system. He warned that students are already using tools like ChatGPT to effectively cheat on their assignments, leaving educators without a viable way to teach under current methods.
He suggests that Argentina should leverage a decline in birth rates as an opportunity to shift toward more personalized, high-quality education. This systemic change coincides with his prediction that robotics will soon become a physical presence in the domestic sphere.
Robots with two legs, with a body, are going to be in the streets walking in our houses, tidying our houses, cleaning and taking care of our elderly. Mario Pergolini, via La Nacion
The Cost of Media Vanity
Despite his public profile, Pergolini has become increasingly protective of his private life, specifically regarding his marriage and children. He views the media industry as a business of vanity, noting that the desire to appear different often masks the superficiality of the trade.
While he acknowledges the criticism and scrutiny that come with a journalistic career, he dismisses the toll as simply part of the game.
As Pergolini moves toward a potential 2027 return with a robotic partner, the primary uncertainty remains whether his proposed “cultural” shift can actually capture the digital audiences he claims have already abandoned the traditional screen.
