US embassy cable - 05LIMA4775

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 LIMA 004775 
 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE FOR ECA/PE/V/R/W (METIENNE), 
INFO WHA/PDA (SLEBENS), WHA/AND (JMONSERRATE) 
NEW YORK FOR ECA/PE/V/C/N (DSHIRREFFS) 
 
E.O.12958: N/A 
TAGS: OEXC, SCUL, KPAO, PE 
SUBJECT: PROGRAM EVALUATION: FY-2005 RP: "THE ROLE OF THE MEDIA 
IN U.S. SOCIETY (January 31-February 18, 2005) E/VGW-2005-0009 - 
Peruvian IV Luis Miguel GONZALEZ Rosell 
 
1. DESCRIPTION OF THE ACTIVITY:  IV Luis Miguel GONZALEZ 
participated in subject program to examine the role of the media 
in the U.S., to explore how freedom of the press and freedom of 
speech are translated into reporting on activities of the 
government, public institutions and officials, business, and all 
other realms of society; the significance of the First Amendment 
in the exercise of press freedom, the relationship between the 
media and government, and journalism education and training.  The 
participants examined a wide range of print and broadcast outlets 
from conglomerates and national networks to specialized, 
electronic, and alternative media. 
 
2. DATE, FISCAL YEAR AND QUARTER: January 31-February 18, 2005, 
FY-2005; Second Quarter. 
 
3. MISSION PERFORMANCE PLAN THEME:  Democracy (Freedom of the 
Press.) 
 
4. RESULT/IMPACT: Outstanding. IV Gonzalez was very pleased with 
the exceptional program organization.  He mentioned he had the 
opportunity to broaden his knowledge of the mass media in 
relation to U.S. citizens and institutions, to learn how private 
media works and to understand better the role of public media. 
 
"This program has given me a different view of U.S. society." 
The IV thought that it was fundamental to the success of the 
program to visit Washington's main institutions, such as the 
White House, and the U.S. Congress (the group visited the office 
of a Hispanic congressman and talked with his advisor.)  The 
difference between each State is particularly important to have a 
better understanding of the political and economic 
decentralization of the U.S.  The participant was very impressed 
with U.S. diversity, ethnic and cultural.  IV, who is from Peru's 
third largest city, considers that visiting Wisconsin and 
Tennessee was extremely valuable, due to their different 
realities compared to big cities.  He noted their residents' 
particular behavior, and learned how they handle journalism. 
 
5. AUDIENCE REACHED: Ten participants from eight Latin American 
countries. IV Gonzalez has had great experiences and has 
broadened his network of contacts.  The example of U.S. 
journalism, its dailies in cities and states, and its relation to 
Washington, has given him a new perspective for his daily work. 
 
6. OFFICER INTERPRETERS:  IV Gonzalez praised the Escort/ 
Interpreters' professionalism.  He mentioned that "The 
interpreters were first-rate.  They were always very courteous, 
responsible, and ready to assist the group."  He is grateful to 
Rene Alzamora, Martha Victoria, Javier Castillo and Carlos Hoyos, 
for their kind assistance during the program. 
 
7. QUALITY OF SUPPORT FROM ECA:  Program was funded with FY-05 IV 
allocation.  We thank PO Ms. Martha Etienne for her wonderful 
organization, coordination, and for briefing participants on 
every program detail. Receiving a timely translated program 
summary was very important to the IV. He praised Lima Post FSNs 
Guido Chirinos and Borie Velez for their clear briefings on the 
program details, and on every single aspect in relation to his 
trip to the U.S. 
 
8. HIGHLIGHTS OF THE PROGRAM: 
 
In Washington, D.C.: 
-- Meeting with the Vice Presidential Advisor at the office of 
the Vice President. 
-- The Pentagon, not only for its significance, but also for the 
two conferences they had, on how the news is broadcast from the 
official point of view. 
-- The World Bank, because it allowed the IV to observe the new 
focus they are giving to development, from the point of view of 
the micro-enterprise. 
-- The impressive visit to CNN, and how they perceive Latin 
American correspondents. 
-- USA Today and the Gannet Group, a very interesting visit due 
to their vision as national dailies, and how they focus on the 
news in order to sell more. 
-- At the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) the visitors had 
a full discussion of this topic.  The presenters discussed the 
First Amendment and noted that if the CPJ is appropriately 
notified of cases of abuse of journalists, the CPJ will act to do 
something about it. 
-- The visit to the Washington Post, and sharing ideas with a 
correspondent for Latin America who was departing the following 
day to Iraq was defined as "an enriching experience." 
 
New York: 
-- The Wall Street Journal. IV Gonzalez was greatly impressed 
with this newspaper and its extraordinarily large U.S. 
circulation.  The Journal's Foreign News Editor provided a 
thorough explanation of the purpose of this business-economic 
newspaper. 
-- The educational discussion with the Dean of the Department of 
Journalism and his assistants at Columbia University was 
enlightening. 
 
San Francisco, CA: 
-- The San Francisco Chronicle meeting with Columnist David 
Lazarus was the highlight of the city program. 
-- The visit to the public radio and television gave the IV a 
different view of what the public media are. 
-- Mother Jones magazine was of great interest to IV Gonzalez, 
especially the issues of social justice and investigative 
reporting. 
Madison, WI: 
-- Another interesting visit was the session with the editor of 
the "Milwaukee Journal Sentinel." 
-- The meeting with The Daily Cardinal, written and edited by 
university students, and self-financed, demonstrated what 
students can do.  At present, IV Gonzalez is using this model at 
the University of Trujillo, where he is a journalism professor. 
-- At the University of Wisconsin, Madison, Communications 
Department, the conferences with Chris Long on civic journalism 
and the effects of TV on children and the family, reporting and 
ethics, were motivating and valuable. 
 
Memphis, TN 
-- The visit to the Memphis Business Journal was very useful.  IV 
Gonzalez observed independent reporting, and learned about the 
Memphis historical and cultural heritage. 
-- The visit to the Commercial Appeal was noteworthy.  The 
visitors were offered an hour-and-a-half meeting with Managing 
Editor Otis Sanford, an African-American, and Michael Kelly, 
Editorial Page Columnist. 
-- The meeting at Memphis University with Professor Redmond 
represented a stupendous experience.  Dr. Redmond indicated that 
journalism had become the "Fourth Power" in the U.S. 
 
9. LONG-TERM RESULTS: This program has allowed IV Gonzalez to 
apply his knowledge and experience at the University of Trujillo, 
where he teaches journalism. 
 
He mentioned that contacts with professors at the universities of 
New York, San Francisco, Madison, and Memphis, are valuable for 
possible educational links with the University of Trujillo.  IV 
Gonzales is planning to establish an educational exchange program 
with Trujillo students and the above mentioned universities. 
 
10. COMMENTS/SUGGESTIONS: This program helped IV Gonzalez to 
optimize the use of available resources and techniques. 
-- The two home hospitality events the group had were remarkable 
and pleasant. 
-- IV mentioned that, although the program was excellent, it was 
overloaded with too many activities with NGOs, since most of them 
repeated the theme on the First Amendment. 
-- The rhythm of the program was very intense.  IV considers that 
in some cities the meetings were repetitive, and exhausting.  IV 
suggests to have more flexible meetings, and appointments, and to 
have some free time between meetings to provide the possibility 
of walking around the city and to "rest the mind."  "It is 
important to consider quality rather than quantity." 
 
STRUBLE