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What is happening in
In fact, I have been
one of the victims of this war that is being led by a president who I supported
during the revolution of the 1980s. But there is no longer a revolution or a
counterrevolution in
However, Roberto
Larios, president of the group Unión de Periodistas de
These opposing
viewpoints were debated on Wednesday in
It was the start of a discussion that promises to be intense, complex, and difficult, as the main actors--the government and media owners--were not present at the forum. Nonetheless, we proved that among journalists we are able to debate and find some common ground. My participation in this forum can be summarized into four points:
First, we need a
policy of no tolerance for aggression against journalists, whether they are verbal,
institutional, or physical. The president must take the lead in this process by
putting an end to his constant attacks. Second, we must put an end to the information
embargo against the independent media, which violates an elemental democratic
principle: Citizens have the right to participate in public decision-making. What's
more, in
Third, we need an ample and well-documented debate on the new telecommunications law, which will set the rules of the game for assigning and administrating radio and television frequencies. A debate will help us avoid state abuses that could affect press freedom in broadcast media.
Lastly, and I must highlight this point, the best weapons media have in the war against the government are good journalism, investigative rigor, and the promotion of a self-critical attitude and the knowledge that we owe the truth to our audiences. It is much more effective to self-regulate by means of professional and ethical guidelines than by allowing politicians to be tempted into imposing laws that control the press. In order to do so, at the Center for Media Investigations (CINCO), we promote a media observatory that monitors and criticizes the press.
CPJ's report was not hailed by everyone, and perhaps its main virtue is precisely that it created controversy among Nicaraguan journalists. This is a debate that I insist is still in its embryonic phase, but during which, as the daily El Nuevo Diario put it the following day, "the president of the UPN put up a fight in favor of the government," at the least this one time, while discussing the war that is being fought against the media. Hopefully, this will only be a first step.
Carlos Fernando Chamorro heads the Center for Media Investigations (CINCO), a nonprofit group that promotes media research, democracy, and investigative journalism in Nicaragua.
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I wanted to comment about the news that I have recently read regarding Nicaraguan boxing legend Alexis Arguello. Not for one moment am I sold by what is being stated. That man did not commit suicide. The poor journalism done on this boxing legend and the corrupt government that is the Sandinistas has me apalled. The Sandinistas killed him and no one is standing up to say it! A brave man like Alexis Arguello deserves more. He gave so much to the Nicaraguan people by putting it on the global map and having people recognize that there is more than just poverty in this country. This is how Nicaragua pays him back. By accepting that he committed suicide; I'm disgusted.
It is absured to believe that the death Mayor of Managua was suicide. The sad part is, the case was "closed" by Sandinista government controlled police investigators.
If Nicaragua does not wake up, we will be under Dictator Ortega until our demise.
I was pleased to see the fourth and last point included. Whereas I agree that the Ortega administration has been unfriendly enough to the press to make accusations of press repression plausible, my impression is that neither LP nor END customarily operate with the kind of journalistic integrity that would prompt a sitting politician to be open to the press. It is the rare "news" article (not editorial) that even seeks to supply balance by e.g. asking for and including reactions from those criticized. I don't believe that the press should or even can be completely neutral, but I don't see many journalists writing in or about Nicaragua trying to be balanced. This is not said to excuse affronts to press freedoms in Nicaragua, but it is said to suggest that civic-mindedness is a two-way street.