Dart Center for Journalism and Trauma

Student Journalists Covering U.S.-Mexico Border Face Trauma, Danger

By Clayton R. Norman

Journalists and educators came together at the University of Arizona to develop strategies for teaching student journalists to safely and ethically report on a region wracked by violence.

Ghost Town

By Cecilia Ballí

The crossfire of drug-related violence is rendering farming towns along the U.S.-Mexico border virtually uninhabitable. Texas Monthly staff writer Cecilia Balli, a 2010 Dart Center Ochberg Fellow, reports on residents of one border town who live amid escalating terror.

The Deadening Influence of Border Violence

Sensational media depictions of gruesome crimes stemming from Mexico's ongoing drug war are distorting public values and attitudes towards violence. The deadening impact of this kind of reporting is a prime topic of conversation at an IRE/Dart conference on border violence in Laredo, Texas. More »

Mexican Journalists Protest Violence

By Marcela Turati

The escalating violence against journalists in Mexico prompted an unprecedented demonstration of more than 1,000 people in ten cities, demanding an end to murders, kidnappings and disappearances.

Seminar Highlights Mexican Journalists' Vulnerability

By Stan Alcorn

The violence that surrounds drug trafficking at the U.S.-Mexico border makes it among the most dangerous and difficult beats any journalist can cover. Twenty six reporters from both sides of the border who cover this beat  gathered at the Knight Center for Journalism in the Americas in Austin, Texas on March 26 and 27, 2010 to discuss how to stay safe and get stories out at a seminar sponsored by the McCormick Foundation. More »

A New Guide for Disaster Journalism in Latin America

By Sherry Ricchiardi

Over the years, I have had the good fortune to work with journalists in Colombia, Guatemala and Mexico: countries where the media are under fire for the watchdog role they perform.  I have been awed by their powerful commitment to the profession and to the public they serve despite great personal risk.  I always departed wishing I could do more. More »

Covering Trauma in Latin America

Journalists and trauma experts from throughout the Americas discuss how to meet the special challenges faced in reporting violence and remaining resilient.

Training for Danger in Mexico

By Stan Alcorn

As more news professionals die in Mexico's ongoing drug war, a look at how some are learning to protect themselves.

Alleged Journalist Murderer Nabbed at Denny's

By Stan Alcorn

From a Denny's restaurant in Omaha comes a tale of cross-border drug smuggling, cross-media journalistic cooperation — and the long-awaited arrest of the alleged killer of a Mexican journalist.

The 2004 murder of Gregory Rodriguez, a photojournalist for the Sinaloa newspaper, El Debate, was an early harbinger of the wave of assassinations that have made Mexico the most dangerous country on earth for reporters outside of Iraq.  But now an alleged Mexican drug smuggler arrested in that Omaha Denny's has been implicated in Rodriguez's murder, report Dart Center Ochberg Fellows Karyn Spencer (2008) and Michel Marizco (2007). More »

Mexico's Journalists Under Siege

By Stan Alcorn

An unprecedented spike in violence is testing the skills and freedoms of the press in North America's youngest democracy.

Fundraiser: Stop Killing Mexican Journalists

A fundraiser in New York City hosted by the Irish-American Writers & Artists organization raises funds for the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) and their efforts in Mexico.

Conversation: Censorship By Bullet in Mexico

At Cooper Union in New York City, an event featuring readings, conversations, and discussions about the impact of Mexico’s soaring drug-related violence on freedom of expression and civil society.

Yolanda's Crossing

By Stella Chavez, Paul Meyer, and Lara Solt

In rural Mexico , Yolanda Méndez Torres lived in a society where sexual violence against girls often goes unreported and unpunished. In America , she joined legions of undocumented abuse victims who have little hope of finding justice. This narrative series chronicles Yolanda's crossing between the two worlds. Originally published in The Dallas Morning News (Dallas, TX), in Dec., 2006.