“Only Interested in the Dead”. National Media Representations and Narratives of the People of the Ecuador-Colombia Border

Abstract

The article examines representations of Ecuadorian newspapers on northern border population, in the framework of relations between the Governments of Ecuador and Colombia. It also addresses how to build local alternatives toward such representations. From a look that combines ethnography and discourse analysis, we observe the role of media in the construction and reproduction images that adversely affect daily life in this border. Moreover, the existence of local narratives and practices that could be considered attempts to reappropriate this production by the border population is found. We understand them as efforts to regain ownership and the ability to decide on what to say, how to talk and who to ask about the border.