Chapter 17 Journalism Research in Mexico Historical Development and Research Interests in the Latin American Context Maria Elena Hernández Ramírez and Andreas Schwarz Journalism Research in the Latin American Context In Latin America, journalism studies as a specific sub-discipline started in the 1990s as the result of rather isolated efforts. Before that time journalism was a subsidiary subject of communication research, a field in an early stage as well and considered to be marginal. Although a great deal of literature related to the press done before the 1950s has been found, most of it is of historical and cultural nature or in some cases refer to legal-political approaches, and emerged within very specific contexts (Aguirre, 1996). This is an explainable tendency in the context of the continuous social crisis in the region. Three main factors have contributed to the delay in the definition of concrete research programs for the study of journalistic phenomena: 1 the “precariousness and increasing dependence” of general scientific Latin Amer- ican research (Fuentes, 1998, p. 37); 2 the direction followed by academic studies on journalism and communication (Herrera, 1998); 3 the very little interest in the production of scientific knowledge showed by the media industry (Marques, 1992, p. 94). Despite the very heterogeneous conditions of Latin American countries, it can be stated that empiric investigation on communication and journalism in the launch- ing period (the late 1960s and the early 1970s) received a decisive influence from the UNESCO developmental parameters. Through the Economic Commission for Latin America (CEPAL), UNESCO sought the commitment of the mass media to encourage economic growth by spreading values such as productivity, efficiency, competence, and innovation (Marques, 1992, p. 96). With regard to the development of journalism studies in Latin America since the 1990s, Brazil, Argentina, Mexico, and Venezuela stand out. This fact is con- sistent with their leading participation in the general scientific production of their region, even if the overall figures are rather marginal. 1 After Brazil, Mexico is one of the strongest contributors in Latin America to the development of specific research on journalism. To understand the emergence of Mexican journalism research, which started as – and partially still is – a fragmented research field, and its status quo, one has to describe its historical development and the respective institutional and socio-political conditions that often constrained further differentiation. The Emergence of Journalism Research in Mexico – from Individual Efforts to a Specific Field of Study? The pre-theoretical stage – historical groundwork and beginning politicization (the 1950s to the 1970s) Journalism research in Mexico is intrinsically related to the broader field of com- munication studies. A brief description of journalism education history in the country may explain this assertion. The first recognized Mexican journalism school was the Carlos Septién García, founded in 1949 (www.septien.edu.mx/). It was followed by a bachelor’s degree in journalism at the Autonomous National University (UNAM) in 1951 and, three years later, by a journalism school at the University of Veracruz. Besides the teaching of journalistic practice and tools, the curricula of the last two programs included scientific theory and methodology from a broad range of social scientific disciplines. However, further differentiation was inhibited, because since the 1960s, the incipient journalism programs were replaced by broadly conceptualized degrees in communication studies. The educa- tional goal shifted to the formation of “social communicators” instead of “simple” journalists. This reorientation to more heterogeneous curricula was recommended by UNESCO and promoted through the International Centre of Superior Commu- nication Studies (CIESPAL) in Latin America, which intended to close the gap that the arising electronic media brought to the teaching of journalism in traditional schools. According to Fuentes, who conducted extensive document analyses of all accessible contributions of Mexican Communication studies, its pioneer period (1956–70) can be characterized by three pivotal tendencies (1988, p. 27): 1 normative and historical studies of the press; 2 applications of diffusion research in the rural sector; 3 first reflections concerning the structure and social function of radio and tele- vision. Research related to journalism focused on describing and categorizing the news- papers’ history as well as the role of journalism during specific periods or in certain regions (Ruiz, Reed, and Cordero, 1974). Mexican journalism research during the 1960s was shaped by the strong influence of theories and methodologies of US scholars, who conducted mostly 212 Maria Elena Hernández Ramírez and Andreas Schwarz