THE MEDIA: World Press Review, September 2000

As usual, the September issue of The World Press Review has many items of interest to us. The feature section is entitled "The New Face of Mexico's Politics" and the cover has a picture of Vicente Fox, smiling and triumphant. The section contains in translations from the Spanish, French, and Mexican press, La Jornada being especially well represented.

There are several articles on immigration, showing both understanding of their plight and of the problems of the host country. A German paper objects to the derogatory label "economic refugees," which does not reflect the fact that they are enterprising people who would be an asset to the host country.

There is a long article from Le Monde Diplomatique entitled "Colombia: Behind Guerrilla Lines", questioning the wisdom of the Plan Colombia, which might turn the country into another Vietnam. Five journalists were murdered in Colombia in 1999, bringing us back to the articles in the IPI Report.

The usual collection of cartoons from the world press show how a good cartoon can summarize a complex situation in a picture.

Ronald Hilton - 10/30/00