This initiative uses information and communication technology (ICT) in an effort to create - and make freely available to the public - interactive maps that visually illustrate the connections between the media, elections, and demographics. (Click here to access these web-based maps, which include information about the following countries: Argentina, Brazil, Canada, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, Guatemala, Mexico, Peru, Trinidad and Tobago, and Uruguay.) Organisers have crossed this data with electoral results and socio-demographic information, making various types of related information and resources available on the Mapping the Media in the Americas website.

Having collected this information and built a tool to share it, in the second phase of the project, organisers are focusing on participation and access - rooting the ownership and preservation of the project in the region, ensuring that the maps include reliable information about the media and are accessible to a broad range of stakeholders. Through interactive communication tools, technical bulletins, and face-to-face meetings, the project team will continue to support the development of in-country partners' GIS capacity and expertise. Ongoing training, troubleshooting, and information sharing will be offered, to the end of producing a network of GIS experts using this interactive technology for their own research, analysis, and public information efforts.

Democracy & Governance.

This project is premised on the belief that the media can play an important role in the decisions citizens make in democratic societies, in that they are key players in transmitting information about elections, candidates, public services, and government policies. Nonetheless, organisers claim, little is publicly known about the ownership structure of the media, the impact of media messaging on the vote, or the effect of media concentration and its potential threat to the diversity of ideas, freedom of expression, and access to information. It is this lack that Mapping the Media in the Americas is designed to address.