The Foreign Service Journal, July-August 2010

date, numerous arrests have been made, but the cases are still pending and the investigation is ongoing. The horrific nature of the killings — victims gunned down in the middle of the day in front of their children—has brought media attention to the larger crisis. But it will continue to fester with- out sustained efforts by local media, and an outcry by the local population. Filling the Information Gap Though threats to expression differ greatly from country to country, the overall trends in our hemisphere are not favorable. The erosion of that fun- damental right —whether through di- rect government coercion or via threats by powerful and illegal groups in soci- ety — will inevitably slow the move- ment toward justice, endangering democracy itself. This puts the United States in a dif- ficult position, one reminiscent of the Cold War. In those days, when Soviet- bloc governments suppressed raw news, it was up to the U.S. Information Agency to explain to local populations what was happening in their own com- munities. Through massive media campaigns providing alternative sources of infor- mation, publications, libraries and bi- national centers throughout the world, Washington spent billions of dollars over decades to inform and engage local populations. The advent of new technologies has made it less necessary for the U.S. to fill in these gaps. How- ever, we do still have a role to play in giving local reporters more and better tools. One such solution has been devel- oped right here in Mexico. The U.S. government and international founda- tions have partnered with local organi- zations, like the Digital Journalism Center at the University of Guadala- jara, to teach reporters better ways to cover dangerous stories while remain- ing safe. The center’s staff have also worked to promote investigative jour- nalism, conducting research to expose cartel infiltration of local institutions and the role of narcotraffickers in the wave of murders and violence that is plaguing countries like Mexico. They have even created an online resource in Spanish that could be useful else- where in the hemisphere: www.cober turasegura.wikispaces.com . It is vital for groups like the DJC to thrive, particularly because manyMex- ican news organizations are highly de- pendent on advertising revenue from state and municipal governments, and so few local nongovernmental organi- zations can fill the financial gap. Through their virtual network of re- porters, contacts and ongoing pro- grams, the impact of such organi- zations extends far beyond Mexico. In remembering the 200th anniver- sary of the region’s fight for independ- ence, let us recall a warning from one of our own revolutionary figures, James Madison: “A popular govern- ment, without popular information, or the means of acquiring it, is but a pro- logue to a farce or a tragedy; or, perhaps both.” Though not a remedy in and of itself, the power of the pen in Latin America is irreplaceable. It must be reinforced, both locally and internationally. ■ Christopher Teal, a Foreign Service of- ficer since 1999 and a former member of the Foreign Service Journal Editorial Board, is currently public affairs officer in Guadalajara. Silvio Gonzalez, an FSO since 2001, is PAO in Ciudad Juarez. His previous postings include Islamabad, Ljubljana and Bogota. J U LY- A U G U S T 2 0 1 0 / F O R E I G N S E R V I C E J O U R N A L 15 S P E A K I N G O U T