Abstract

VALLEJO, Maryluz  and  MORALES, Mario. Panopticon for Para-Political Candidates. Coverage of October 2011 Local Elections in the Departments of Sucre, Magdalena and Norte de Santander from Regional and National Press. Signo pensam. [online]. 2013, vol.32, n.63, pp.70-92. ISSN 0120-4823.

On behalf of the International Center for Transitional Justice (ICTJ) a study on the local elections of October 30, 20ii, was carried out. This study focused on the "candidates of special observation", i.e. syndicated by having political alliances with investigated and prosecuted politicians for alleged links with paramilitaries. The purpose which guided the observation was to determine whether the regional press, in a context of reasonable suspicion regarding such links, fulfilled its role of "watchdog of democracy", by denouncing irregular behaviors in the pre-election and post-election period; if they defended political interests or remained neutral. The observation was made in three departments of electoral risk, in order to analyze how was the press coverage that received these candidates in 14 selected media, including national and regional newspapers with that scope of coverage.

Keywords : Electoral observatory; journalism and Parapolitics; imaginaries; social representations; editorial line; Mass Media; political aspect; elections; journalistic coverage; paramilitarism; Colombia.

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