Monday, March 12, 2007
Casa de periodistas
I´m very curious about journalism in Mexico, been looking for ways to learn more about it. Last week I saw an ad in Noticias, one of the Oaxacan newspapers, for a meeting of journalists here. I figured that since it was in the paper, anyone could show up, so I did. I knew I was in the right place because there was a wooden plaque outside the door that said "Casa de Periodistas." The meeting place looks like it might be the downstairs of someone´s house. But there is a plaque inside dedicated to Oaxacan journalists, and the main room seems to be a sort of library.
There were only men there. I met the director and told him I was a journalist from the US and was curious to know more about journalism in Mexico. My idea was to try to set up an intercambio with a Mexican journalist. He introduced me to a writer for Toucan, which is a very small independent periodical here in oaxaca that doesn´t accept advertising. This writer was very kind, and explained some of the basics:
Most newspapers and journalists, he says, receive money from the government in some way or another. The idea of a "free press" exists here, but in practice there are many impediments. The government can shut down a newspaper. (Noticias was shut down at one point, and forced to temporarily move out of town to publish.) In much of mexico, and certainly in Oaxaca, many journalists are quite aware of what we would consider good stories, but wouldn´t think of writing them. He points to his eye, his ear, then makes a slash across his mouth.
He showed me a couple stories in Noticias, which again, is supposed to be pretty independent, that he says were clearly paid for by the government. They look exactly like news stories. He swears that readers can tell which ones are placed, and which ones aren´t. But I am clueless as to how.
I had heard most of this before from others. But as he whispered some of this stuff to me, I suddenly realized that many of the guys in this room - they were all men, most in their fifties or older - were probably on the take. Though here, I don´t suppose it´s considered bribery...it´s just augmenting a very low salary. Kind of a sidenote, but Mexico´s extremely low salaries for professionals really set up the country for the kind of corruption that plagues it. It´s expected that people will find a way to use their job to supplement their incomes.
I think I´ve done a fairly good job of trying to set aside, or at least be aware, of my biases as I learn about Mexican culture, and to keep what I learn in context, not constantly compare it to what I know.
Turns out that this may be the part where I can´t. It is hard to explain to someone who isn´t a journalist just how unsettling and confusing it was to sit in this room full of journalists, all of them perfectly kind, and realize that there are some here being paid by sources for stories, others who omit important information from stories. At the same time, I know these journalists face enormous challenges regarding access to information. And most important, i´m not being a drama queen when I say the threats they face if their stories displease the wrong people are very real - their careers, their finances, their families, even their lives can all be in danger.
It was all a bit overwhelming, and I suddenly felt very naive.
I got the names of some journalists I may be able to speak with and left fairly quickly. I'd like to try to visit the two larger Oaxacan newspapers, but I am going to need to do some work to adjust my attitude first.
There were only men there. I met the director and told him I was a journalist from the US and was curious to know more about journalism in Mexico. My idea was to try to set up an intercambio with a Mexican journalist. He introduced me to a writer for Toucan, which is a very small independent periodical here in oaxaca that doesn´t accept advertising. This writer was very kind, and explained some of the basics:
Most newspapers and journalists, he says, receive money from the government in some way or another. The idea of a "free press" exists here, but in practice there are many impediments. The government can shut down a newspaper. (Noticias was shut down at one point, and forced to temporarily move out of town to publish.) In much of mexico, and certainly in Oaxaca, many journalists are quite aware of what we would consider good stories, but wouldn´t think of writing them. He points to his eye, his ear, then makes a slash across his mouth.
He showed me a couple stories in Noticias, which again, is supposed to be pretty independent, that he says were clearly paid for by the government. They look exactly like news stories. He swears that readers can tell which ones are placed, and which ones aren´t. But I am clueless as to how.
I had heard most of this before from others. But as he whispered some of this stuff to me, I suddenly realized that many of the guys in this room - they were all men, most in their fifties or older - were probably on the take. Though here, I don´t suppose it´s considered bribery...it´s just augmenting a very low salary. Kind of a sidenote, but Mexico´s extremely low salaries for professionals really set up the country for the kind of corruption that plagues it. It´s expected that people will find a way to use their job to supplement their incomes.
I think I´ve done a fairly good job of trying to set aside, or at least be aware, of my biases as I learn about Mexican culture, and to keep what I learn in context, not constantly compare it to what I know.
Turns out that this may be the part where I can´t. It is hard to explain to someone who isn´t a journalist just how unsettling and confusing it was to sit in this room full of journalists, all of them perfectly kind, and realize that there are some here being paid by sources for stories, others who omit important information from stories. At the same time, I know these journalists face enormous challenges regarding access to information. And most important, i´m not being a drama queen when I say the threats they face if their stories displease the wrong people are very real - their careers, their finances, their families, even their lives can all be in danger.
It was all a bit overwhelming, and I suddenly felt very naive.
I got the names of some journalists I may be able to speak with and left fairly quickly. I'd like to try to visit the two larger Oaxacan newspapers, but I am going to need to do some work to adjust my attitude first.
# posted by Anne @ 12:49 PM 
