DW Akademie in Mexico and Central America

Mexico and its southern neighbors are marked by widespread violence that often affects innocent bystanders and at times is targeted at critical journalists. Interest groups also spread rumors and misinformation on social networks, frequently aiming to divide society and limit freedom of expression.

Disadvantaged population groups, including young people, women and indigenous communities, are particularly affected by mis- and disinformation, and often lack skills for dealing with the media. This is especially true in rural areas and unsteady urban neighborhoods where education opportunities are limited but where Internet access is increasing.

Our activities

DW Akademie works with partners in Mexico, Guatemala and El Salvador, focusing on journalism, education and research to combat disinformation. They develop new solutions, make proven methods and models as available to people as possible, and encourage citizens to actively participate in a democratic dialogue - both on and offline.

Trustworthy journalism is the focus of Periodistas de a Pie, a Mexican partner and countrywide network of local digital media outlets. They develop editorial guidelines to tackle disinformation, test new media formats to strengthen dialogues with audiences and promote Media and Information Literacy (MIL) skills.

In Guatemala, together with Asociación de Servicios Educativos y Culturales (ASEC), MIL is for the first time being integrated into the curriculum, reaching more than 12,000 young Guatemalans otherwise excluded from the country’s traditional education system. The partner organization COMUNICARES is developing fun learning approaches that are tested by Guatemala’s Ministry of Education. These activities are aimed at indigenous Mayan communities, taking their cultural environment and limited Internet access into account.

In El Salvador, the knowledge and innovation hub at the partner universities Escuela de Comunicación Mónica Herrera (ECMH) and Universidad Centroamericana José Simeón Cañas (UCA) is generating new insights into disinformation. With research and participatory formats, they analyze disinformation mechanisms and impact and also promote dialogue and make practical recommendations.

Local partner organizations in Mexico also include the RedAMI México network, established by DW Akademie and UNESCO. It comprises eight institutions from various sectors aiming to strengthen MIL in Mexico.

DW Akademie has been active in the country since 2020 and in March 2023 opened an office in Mexico City. With its MIL regional projects, DW Akademie was the first international organization to systematically further media literacy in Central America.

DW Akademie also promotes constructive journalism through  #CambiaLaHistoria , together with the Salvadoran media outlet Alharaca. In addition, DW Akademe supports journalists in exile through its global project Space for Freedom. In Latin America, its strategic partner for this is the Press and Freedom of Expression (IPLEX). Both projects are supported by Germany's Federal Foreign Office.

Funding: German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ), Federal Foreign Office

Program Director Mexico, Guatemala and El Salvador: Julia Manske

Local partners: Mexico: Periodistas de a Pie and RedAMI México ; Guatemala: Asociación de Servicios Educativos y Culturales (ASEC) and COMUNICARES; El Salvador: Escuela de Comunicación Mónica Herrera (ECMH) and Universidad Centroamericana José Simeón Cañas (UCA)

Focus: Media and Information Literacy, professionalism, civic participation, media viability, research, strategies against disinformation