School of Communication professor Rick Rockwell held a book signing this Monday to promote his 2003 book, "Media Power in Central America," which explores the political and media landscape of Central America.
Rockwell and co-author Noreene Janus began researching for the book in the 1990s, when they conducted more than 150 interviews in six Central American countries from El Salvador to Nicaragua.
Many students who attended his book signing were curious as to why Central American media policies were important.
"There are lessons to learn in Central America that people have forgotten about," Rockwell said.
He said that it is important to study the media politics of Central America because their policies directly affect the way their democracy works, or doesn't work. In the United States, the media "provides a transparency necessary for a democracy to work. In Central America, the media works counter to building a democracy."
"[Central America] was the Iraq of the period when I was a journalist," Rockwell said. "Just because the U.S. attention left doesn't mean the problems [of government corruption] leave with it."
Rockwell said that when he began researching Central American media, he found that "everything [he] knew was flipped on its head."
One of his most "spine-tingling" career highlights includes covering Pope John Paul II's visit to Guatemala in the 1980s. He has also covered refugee camps, an event he calls a "heart-rending experience."
Rockwell has had an extensive journalism career before coming to teach at AU.
For the last two decades, he has worked as a producer, reporter and news manager for companies including The Baltimore Sun, ABC and the Discovery Channel. He has also had extensive experience involving international studies in Mexico and Central America.
Rockewell earned his undergraduate degree at Northwestern University and his master's degree in international journalism at the University of Southern California in 1994.
He taught at the Medill School of Journalism at Northwestern University before becoming a professor here at AU.
"[Journalism has] given so much to me, I want to give something back to the profession," Rockwell said.
He encourages students who want to pursue a career in international journalism to know a foreign language and to "parachute into a country before the curve starts. Think about a country before [everyone else]. You have to know the news in order to predict [the news]."
"I love journalism. I love truth telling. I love good stories," he told the crowd of students and teachers who gathered to discuss his new book.
Rockwell is the winner of several prestigious awards, including the 2001 Open Door Award and received the Congressional Fellowship from the American Political Science Association for 2003-2004.
