The impact of U.S. media inaccurately portraying Mexico was debated among journalists, academics and Mexican government officials Tuesday at Northwestern.

There are too many “greasers, drug lords, corrupt policemen and bandits” in U.S. coverage, said Jorge Capetillo, who spoke about the impact images of Mexico have on U.S. readers.

Held in the Louis Room at Norris University Center, the seminar also discussed how foreign correspondents gather information and what images make it into U.S. media.

The Medill School of Journalism and the Center for International and Comparative Studies sponsored the seminar, which was the latest in a series begun by the Mexican embassy in February.

“The reason a forum like this is usually held is because somebody is unhappy,” said Medill Prof. Marda Dunsky. “There is a perception among the Mexican government that U.S. media coverage on Mexico mainly is negative.

“The purpose of this is to hear what the issues are,” said Dunsky, who organized the event and moderated a session on the mechanics of U.S. coverage of Mexico.

Capetillo, the special consultant to the Dean of the New School for Social Research in Mexico, said the proximity of Mexico to the U.S. and their shared economic interests make positive mutual perceptions important. However, U.S. journalists’ emphasis on drug trafficking and illegal immigration has reduced Mexico to “an issue country.”

“Many Mexicans see the U.S. as an unwelcome intruder in Mexican politics and economics, and many Americans view Mexico as little more than a footnote in their own country’s history,” he said.

Dunsky said there is a natural tension between the interests of the Mexican government and the interests of the U.S. readership.

She noted that Americans, for example, want answers to questions about who gains and loses jobs, and that is what gets reported.

But it is not always up to U.S. foreign correspondents to decide how issues are covered. During the North American Free Trade Agreement debate, the Mexican government, rather than leave U.S. media to their own accord, hired public relations firms to lobby newspaper editorial boards.

Mexico wanted to “educate” the public on its own terms, said Tim O’Leary, a former deputy assistant U.S. trade representative and current columnist for The Dallas Morning News.

“(Mexico) needed to change the old image,” said O’Leary, who spoke about the influence of U.S. media on the U.S.-Mexico relationship. “They needed to engage the U.S. media.”

Coverage of NAFTA also “made Mexico more an issue of domestic agenda than of foreign policy,” said panelist José Carreño Carlón, a former press secretary to the president of Mexico.

Turnout for the event was low among the NU community, Dunsky said, with little outside attention beyond a few Medill professors and a handful of students.

Even if few outside people heard it, Mexican government officials and academics airing their views with journalists gave everyone a better understanding of others’ expectations, Dunsky said.

“With a forum like this, the best thing that can happen is an increased mutual understanding.”