Central America and the Caribbean

Central America

Several of the nations between Mexico on the north and Colombia to the south were the scene of considerable civil war violence in the 1980s and early 1990s. Their media employees suffered accordingly and violence against reporters rose to dangerous levels for years. So did attempts by government to control what news media provided to their audiences.

Media in Central America generally share several characteristics. While most of the countries' constitutions call for freedom of the press, practice in fact varies widely. The defining media factor in all of Central America is politics even though the vast majority of both print and broadcast media outlets are privately owned. Newspapers are often closely allied with one political faction or another. In some countries, the government controls a radio or television station, one that usually operates in parallel with commercial competitors. Virtually all media depend on advertising, including the paid placement of government notices, the latter providing governments with considerable persuasive power over media operations.

Being a journalist in the region can be a dangerous profession, as attacks on and even killing of journalists, while less prevalent than in the 1980s and 1990s, continue. Furthermore, journalists are nearly always poorly paid, which can lead to corruption as they seek income from other sources. Some countries require journalists to be registered with the national journalist's organizations, and sometimes to hold a journalism degree and some years of experience (though these rules are seldom enforced).

Radio is by far the most important news medium in the region as it is readily accessible—especially useful when literacy levels are low—and can be tuned with widely available and inexpensive receivers. Television is on the rise as an important news medium. The Internet is available at least in the capital city of each country and is rarely controlled by the government, partially because penetration rates remain relatively low.