While I would look at http://NarcoNews.com at times, it was never my primary source of "news" until the 28 June 2009 coup in Honduras. Since then, NarcoNews has provided a lot of insight. It was always clear that it was representing "the people" rather than what we have gotten all too used to in what we think of as the media.

Reading more and even corresponding with its creator, Al Giordano, I now better understand what happened to the media and what real journalism is all about. on my http://www.NicaLiving.com web site, I have been criticized for using NarcoNews as a resource but that criticism comes from the bias of the person writing the criticism, not because NarcoNews has not been honest and accurate.

First, let me toss out a quote from an article at http://www.narconews.com/themedium3.html which was written over 10 years ago. The quote comes from an update in 2002. Mario Renato Menéndez Rodriguez, editor and publisher of the daily Por Esto!, defines Authentic Journalism

First, we gather the people together to identify their problems in their own words, and the newspaper gives public voice to those words. Second, we gather the people, all the people, the very same people together to determine what are the solutions to those problems, big and small, and the newspaper gives voice to those solutions. And Third, we gather the people together to force the authorities to either solve or get out of the way of the solutions the people want, and the newspaper is on the side of the people in that struggle to the ultimate consequences."

If you read the rest of the article you will see why this is pretty much a radical idea when compared to what the media does today. He is telling up that the job of the media is to tell the rest of us what some group of people thinks/wants. It's so basic but it also is so far from what today's "mainstream" media does. But, much like the image on your TV getting fuzzy over time, this media role has shifted slowly enough that we don't really notice.

In any case, NarcoNews has moved up in stature for me and I am much more likely to be critical of media sources that, previously, seemed fairly objective. Those sources that I now discount are from all over the political spectrum. This is not just a matter of thinking some segment of the media is flawed.

The cool thing is that Al runs a school of Authentic Journalism. So, there will be more real journalists out there. And, surprise, the school is free. It is free in a lot of ways. Students don't have to pay is part of it but it is also free of "corporate sponsors" and any such that will distort the real goals. It is completely supported by donations. If this making sense and you happen to be interested in donating (or just understanding just how different all this is) read an article titled The Top Ten Reasons to Donate to Narco News and the School of Authentic Journalism.