Drug War: 'Mexico Under Siege': Sensational, or a stark truth?

Excellent question and excellent discussion about the title, 'Mexico Under Siege,' given to the  excellent series of articles on the drug war (300 to date) by the Los Angeles Times. We frequently cross post them here.  As another U.S. citizen living in Mexico, this editor agrees that in many places life is deteriorating, but the whole country is not under siege. We also agree  that a disservice is done to Mexico when the impression is otherwise and it scares away U.S. and Canadian citizens, thereby adding more damage to the livelihood of many Mexicans. (We, too, met many Europeans, especially eastern Europeans, on a recent trip through Chiapas.) The response to the discussion by editor Geoffrey Mohan is thoughtful and balanced.

latimes.com: "Since June 2008, The Times has been reporting on the drug-related violence on both sides of the U.S.-Mexico border. The series is labeled “Mexico Under Siege” and has included more than 300 articles to date. The most recent article, on vigilantes targeting the drug cartels, was published Thursday. But reader John Fries of Long Beach finds the label misleading. He wrote:

'Now yet another article under the headline or title ‘Mexico Under Siege.’ As a frequent traveler to Mexico, most recently three weeks driving in Yucatan, I object to the insinuation contained in this title. Yes, there are some parts of Mexico I would not travel to, just as there are some parts of Los Angeles I don’t drive through on surface streets.

To imply that all of Mexico, and all tourists traveling in Mexico, face daily and constant danger is false, misleading and does a disservice both to Mexico and to our fellow citizens possibly interested in visiting our neighbor. It’s no wonder that recently I meet more Europeans than Americans when I travel. I urge The Times to reconsider the way it presents these articles.' " read more