Media Power in Central America (The History of Media and Communication)

Media Power in Central America explores the political and cultural interplay between the media and those in power in Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Panama, and Nicaragua. Highlighting the subtle strangulation of opposition media voices in the region, the authors show how the years since the guerrilla wars have not yielded the free media systems that some had expected. Rick Rockwell and Noreene Janus examine the region country by country and deal with the specific conditions of government-sponsored media repression, economic censorship, corruption, and consumer trends that shape the political landscape. Challenging the notion of the media as a democratizing force, Media Power in Central America shows how governments use the media to block democratic reforms and outlines the difficulties of playing watchdog to rulers who use the media as a tool of power. Media Power in Central America is the first book in a generation to explore the media landscape in Central America. It captures the political and economic interplay between the media and those in power in the six Spanish-speaking countries of the isthmus. Highlighting the subtle strangulation of opposition media voices in the region, the authors show how the years since the guerrilla wars have not yielded the free media systems that some had expected. Country by country, Rick Rockwell and Noreene Janus deal with the specific conditions of government-sponsored media repression, economic censorship, corruption, consumer trends, and media forms that shape the political landscape. Challenging the notion of the media as a democratizing force, Media Power in Central America shows how the media are used to block democratic reforms in many parts of the region and outlines the difficulties of playing watchdog to rulers who use the media as a tool of power. Honduras and the media oligarchy El Salvador's newly respun corporatism Panama's media civil war The return of the conservatives in Nicaragua Guatemala's struggle with manipulation Costa Rica, the exception that proves the rule State power, the static in the system The threats to Central American journalism Corruption and corporate censorship The postwar evolution. Rockwell and ETHS alumna Janus explore the relationship between strong commercial media and authoritarian regimes in six countries