Journalism under fire

Abstract

An analysis of the duress that was brought to bear on the press in northeastern Mexico during the so-called “War on Drugs,” based on the experience of ten journalists displaced between 2010 and 2015. The text reveals warring armed groups’ fight to control media editorial lines, in addition to messengers’ vulnerable position in the line of fire due to a lack of security protocols their employers might develop, as well as existing connections between public officials and organized crime. In a context where journalists’ murders and disappearances are left unpunished, organizational initiatives designed to compensate for this high professional vulnerability are emerging.