Rios Montt and the Guatemalan press

[Judi Lynn]

8. Oh, please. Your references don't indicate the media is transparent, do they?

Guatemala: Media monopoly "squeezes out alternative voices" Print E-mail

“Controlling information is taking away people's right to information, something that is fundamental for real democracy to exist” (Gonzalo Marroquín, Guatemalan journalist and President of Inter American Press Association)

http://www.waccglobal.org/component/content/article/2542:guatemala-media-monopoly-qsqueezes-out-alternative-voicesq.html

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Media of Guatemala is dominated in the area of commercial television by Mexican media mogul Remigio Ángel González, who since the mid-1990s has "virtual monopoly control of that nation's commercial television airwaves".[1] González controls four television stations in Guatemala - Channels 3, 7, 11 and 13.[2] González, who also owns a majority of the country's cinemas,[1] had by 2000 also acquired 21 radio stations,[1] including Radio Sonora, known as a leader in news.[3] The other two major radio chains are Emisoras Unidas (owned by the Archila family) and Radio Grupo Alius (owned by Alfonso Liu), a chain of Christian stations which does not compete in news or music.[3]

A 2001 study of González' media properties in Guatemala and Nicaragua found that they had a tendency to squeeze out voices opposed to the government, and concluded that "Gonzalez’s ownership practices create an atmosphere that undercuts the development of democracy."[1] He has a strong influence in Guatemalan politics, for example giving $650,000 to Vinicio Cerezo's 1985 presidential campaign,[1] as well as more than $2.6 million and free airtime to Alfonso Portillo's 1999 campaign. "Political analysts say the free commercials helped Portillo win the election."[4] After becoming president, Portillo "named Gonzalez's brother-in-law, Luis Rabbe, as his minister of communications, infrastructure and housing, a powerful Cabinet position whose jurisdiction includes the oversight of broadcast media."[4]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Media_of_Guatemala

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Urban Guatemala Media Environment

Media Environment

Press freedom is preserved in Guatemala’s constitution under Article 35 and is generally respected by the government. In September 2008, seeking to counter perceptions of corruption and a lack of transparency, legislators unanimously approved the Freedom of Information Act. The law allows citizens to request and receive information about public institutions, potentially bolstering the efforts of some journalists to uncover government corruption.

News outlets are free to criticize the government but many journalists still face intimidation because of their reporting-often related to drugs, corruption, and organized crime. In 2008, media houses reported a number death threats against their journalists. In May 2008, Jorge Merida Perez, a prominent journalist of the leading national daily Prensa Libre, was murdered after reporting on drug trafficking and government corruption. In August, Jose Ruben Zamora, president of the Guatemala City daily El Periodico, was abducted and beaten unconscious for covering organized crime and corruption.[1]

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Most broadcast and press outlets are privately owned (the government possesses two television broadcast licenses but does not transmit any signals). The broadcast media environment is controlled by only a few media houses. The largest media group controlled by the Mexican businessman Angel Gonzalez Gonzalez possesses a virtual monopoly in TV broadcasting, managing four national TV channels which include the most popular and important stations in Guatemala: Channel 7, Channel 3, Channel 11 and Channel 13. Furthermore, Angel Gonzalez Gonzalez owns about 21 radio stations, including the most-listened station, Radio Sonora.

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There are four major daily newspapers, and as with the TV industry, the newsprint industry is dominated by a single media house. The La Prensa SA group publishes the two leading newspapers in Guatemala, Nuestro Diario and La Prensa Libre.

The AudienceScapes urban survey shows a citizenry that is aware of the strong domestic influences on the media: 68 percent of respondents agreed with the statement that the government influences the media, while 70 percent agreed that economic groups influence the media.

More:
http://www.audiencescapes.org/country-profiles/urban-guatemala/country-overview/media-environment/media-environment-254

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Nothing like seeing a right-wing ringer try to run off a democrat from a democratic message board. At least you tried.