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Internet use in Mexico's large urban centers has posted impressive growth since web service provision was opened up to competition in the late 1990s. But not all urban Mexicans have participated in this growth. President Hugo Chavez likes to control the flow of information, but he isn't stingy about letting Venezuelans get information from the web. In fact, he has pushed hard to make universal access a reality. Local media outlets, still blemished by a past history of governmental control and bribery-fueled reporting bias, get low marks on reliability from Peruvians. That said, television is the preferred source of trusted news and information. Computer ownership and cell phone ownership in the Andean region, most notably Bolivia, Colombia and Peru, have risen significantly in recent years. In the case of Peru, in 2006, for the first time, the use of mobile phones surpassed landline use nationally and the gap continues to widen. Is democracy the best political system for addressing Latin Americans' woes? In the Andean region, public opinions on this questions are mixed, even though democracy clearly gets the highest marks as a form of government. Peru's youth is riding a wave of technological innovation, which is taking them well beyond their parents in terms of communication and information exchange. |
Regional Overview
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Latin America is turning into a cell phone mecca, thanks in part to pre-paid plans that make mobile calling affordable for the region's many low-income inhabitants. Users also save money because network operators generally don't charge them for receiving calls, only for initiating them. Cell phone penetration has reached an impressive 67 percent of the adult population in Colombia, 70 percent in Argentina and 51 percent in Venezuela. Most phone plans also offer free text messaging (SMS), which has become a popular way to communicate and get news and information. About 44 percent of Venezuelan portable phone users send and receive text messages, compared to 20 percent in Colombia and roughly 20 percent in both Peru and Bolivia.
In a region where about one third of the population lives below the poverty line, the proliferation of storefront internet access points--cabinas publicas in Spanish--have gone some way to bridge the digital divide, as we show in our Peru section. Latin American youth have been enthusiastic fans of instant messaging programs that allow them to communicate with each other in real time. Google, MSN and Yahoo consistently rank in the top three web sites visited in each country. InterMedia surveys found that nearly a third of regular internet users in Andean countries are online for 30 minutes or more--a considerable time commitment that may actually have the effect of pulling audiences from other media. Tasks performed on the web aren't uniform across different countries. Among Andean nations, for example, Peruvians are way ahead Colombians, Bolivians and Ecuadorans in sending email, but all four are roughly on par when it comes to how many people perform job-related tasks (in the 20 percent neighborhood).
Freedom of expression by the media has had been spotty in recent years as leftist and center-right political forces struggle to influence public opinion in a region where many countries face serious economic challenges. Threats to journalistic independence have come from official sources as well as from pressure brought to bear by rebellious paramilitary and guerilla groups in some countries. In Venezuela, a recently-adopted law bars members of the press from criticizing the government or any government official--from mayors all the way up to President Hugo Chavez himself. Ecuadoran president Rafael Correa has imposed fines on newspapers printing critical articles about his administration, while Bolivian leader Evo Morales has tried to crack down on local media, albeit with limited success.