Andrés Riva, a lecturer in “Post-Truth: Journalism and Politics” and “Contemporary International System” for the Bachelor’s Degree in International Studies at the School of Administration and Social Sciences—and a graduate of that program—was selected by the Press and Culture Section of the U.S. Embassy in Montevideo to participate in the 2019 edition of the Edward R. Murrow programme Journalists, under the International Visitors Leadership programme.
Eighteen journalists from Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba, Ecuador, Guatemala, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, the Dominican Republic, Uruguay, and Venezuela are participating in the event.
Riva was the only person selected by Uruguay based on three aspects of his journalistic and academic background: he serves as editor-in-chief of *El Heraldo de Florida*, a family-owned business spanning four generations that celebrated its centennial this year; he is the youngest member of the board of directors of the Organización de la Prensa del Interior; and he has a background in international studies and teaches courses directly related to journalism.
The itinerary will take participants from June 3 to 21, 2019, to Washington, D.C.; Columbus, Ohio; Louisville, Kentucky; Dallas, Texas; and Boston, Massachusetts. In each city, they will visit major local media outlets and various universities and meet with those at the forefront of digital change in journalism, with whom they will discuss topics such as cybersecurity, disinformation, and the impact of new media on the quality of journalism, as well as the implications of new communication tools for democratic institutions.
The objectives of this program are: to examine the rights and responsibilities of the press in a democracy; to observe the practices, norms, and institutions of the media system in the United States; to gain insight into the social, political, and economic structure of the United States; and to explore the impact of digital media and social media on the availability and accuracy of news.