Censorship and Self-censorship of Colombian Journalists when Addressing Information Related to Local Administrations

Abstract

This research examines the newsmaking practices followed by local journalists in the Colombian Caribbean Region when covering information related to local administrations. It also explores the practices of communication officials in the Office of the Mayor, focusing on how they inform both citizens and journalists in the region. The data collection method involved semi-structured interviews with sixteen press and television journalists from the Caribbean Region, as well as with three communication professionals in charge of local administrations in Barranquilla, Santa Marta, and Cartagena. Subsequently, a thematic analysis was performed to identify patterns in the transcripts of these interviews. The topics discussed with journalists included the number of people covering local news in the newsroom; sources of information; criteria for selecting published information, and the presence of censorship or self-censorship in reporting on local management. For the communications professionals in the Offices of the Mayor, the topics covered the mission of their office; criteria for publishing information; channels used for disseminating information to citizens and journalists; the significance of the Transparency and Access to Public Information Law for their office, and the budget allocated for media advertising. The results revealed that censorship and self-censorship occur among journalists when reporting on local administrations, particularly when scrutinizing their management. For those in charge of communication in the respective Offices of the Mayor, the directives from each are definitive in producing information. Both situations prevent citizens from receiving complete, transparent, and good quality information, which is detrimental to democracy