The role of social media in political communication: how alternative journalists illuminate information in Central America’s declining democracies

ABSTRACT

Declining democracy in Central America, from oppressive policies in El Salvador and detaining journalists in Guatemala to emerging anti-press rhetoric in Costa Rica, reinforces a history of violent censorship for Latin American media, complicating journalists’ abilities to influence communication. Through interviews with journalists in Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, and Nicaragua, this study analyzes the role of social media in Central American journalism. The interviews reveal that while the dominance of algorithms and information monopolies may assist financially controlled mainstream journalists, social media provide opportunities for alternative journalists in Central America to circumvent economic constraints and become more prominent gatekeeping actors in political communication. These findings indicate a shift in the news agenda, facilitated by social media but hindered by the lingering darkness of constrained media systems.

KEYWORDS:

• journalism practice
• social media
• political communication
• internet
• corruption
• gatekeeping

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Notes

¹ The terms mainstream and alternative describe the different media types represented in this study. Interviewees consistently referred to ‘mainstream’ media and journalists when describing well-known state-run or corporate-funded media or journalists. Alternative media encompasses journalists interviewed of different formats who share ‘an ideology of “objectivity” with overt advocacy and oppositional practices’ (Atton, 2003, p. 267) and engaging in journalism to ‘correct’ mainstream news (Holt, Figenschou, & Frischlich, 2019).

² Interview questions are available in Appendix A.

³ I anonymized data collection based on IRB protocols and maintain confidentiality for study participants.

⁴ Rodrigo Chaves assumed the presidency in Costa Rica in May 2022. Initial news reports like that by Ronny Rojas for The Washington Post (2022, 13 September) discussed possible financial attacks against media outlets while more recent articles like that by Alonso Martinez for Costa Rica based Delfino (2023, January 9) call attention to virtual campaigns attacking journalists on social media.

⁵ Included quotes are taken from all participants in the study. While there are several instances of highlighting a specific country, country specific identification was removed to minimize potential risk for interviewees, especially in El Salvador, Guatemala, and Nicaragua.