Mexico: Media join forces against drug cartels
In light of rising violence, more than 50 Mexican media outlets have reached agreements aimed at regulating coverage of drug cartels. The rules are intended to prevent the media from being unwittingly exploited to serve the interests of drug criminals.
The initiative "Acuerdo para la Cobertura Informativa contra la Violencia" (Agreement for Informative Reporting against Violence) was joined by the major television companies and newspapers as well as numerous other institutions such as universities. In the document published in Mexico City on Thursday, the signatories undertake to take a clear stance against violence and to prevent criminals from being stylized as victims or even heroes. In northern Mexico in particular, the media are not only directly threatened by the cartels and subjugated by violence. Often the editorial offices are also infiltrated by criminal organizations. Last year, more than 15,000 people were killed in the Mexican drug war. (SDA)
