The deaths of 81 inmates in a prison fire in Santiago this month have brought angry response by users of social networks, who criticized prison conditions in Chile and accused the media of insensitive coverage, Global Voices Online reports.
Alleged statements by a drug trafficking suspect who was captured in September and is now under witness protection in Mexico has led to a heated back and forth between Proceso magazine and Televisa.
Federal prosecutors in São Paulo have begun to investigate whether the Portuguese media group Ongoing has violated a constitutional provision that bans foreigners from owning more than 30 percent of a media outlet, Folha de S. Paulo reports. The investigation was motivated by a complaint from the National Newspaper Association (ANJ) and the Brazilian Association of Radio and TV Broadcasters (Abert).
Soldiers in Argentina’s Gendarmerie police force raided the offices of Papel Prensa, the country’s top newsprint producer and the focal point of an ongoing conflict between the government and Clarín and La Nación, the two largest domestic dailies, EFE and DiarioJornada report.
The Argentine government has initiated new legal action against the newspapers Clarín and La Nación in order to remove the two companies' eight representatives from the board of Papel Prensa, the largest producer of newsprint in the country, Perfil.com reports. The government also wants “judicial intervention” against the papers in response to “numerous and serious irregularities” at the company.
In his first news conference held exclusively for bloggers, outgoing President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva strongly criticized traditional media, saying he had quit reading the opposition press, O Estado de S. Paulo newspaper reports. Among his plans after leaving office Jan. 1, Lula says he’ll blog and tweet, Spain’s El País says.
Journalists in the northeastern state of Rio Grande do Norte earn a base salary of $525 a month, the lowest in Brazil. They have launched a strong Internet campaign to criticize the decline of the profession in their state, and to demand a salary increase and respect for their human rights, the Portal Imprensa media news site reports.
During its 66th general assembly meeting Nov. 5-9, 2010, in Merida, Mexico, the Inter American Press Association (IAPA) voted in its new board of directors for 2010-2013.
Héctor Camero, a member of the Tierra y Libertad (Land and Liberty) community radio station, was notified last week of his two-year prison sentence and fine of US$1,200 for the crime of developing and using a radio frequency without authorization, the World Association of Community Broadcasters (AMARC) reports via IFEX. The sentence also suspends his civil and political rights.
Congress is considering reactivating the “Communication Council” to assist and advise lawmakers on matters related to communication, Folha de Sao Paulo reports. It would not serve as an official monitor but would hold a consultative role.
Brazil's National Federation of Journalists (Fenaj) and the Federation of Radio Broadcasters (Fitert) have petitioned the Supreme Court to rule that Congress must regulate articles of the Constitution dealing with communication. The articles specifically deal with the right of reply, the prohibition of media monopolies, and the creation of quotas for regional content on radio and TV broadcasts.
In order to comply with the constitution, banks had until this week to divest their stakes in the country’s media outlets leading to ownership changes for at least two TV stations, BBC Mundo and El Comercio report.