Throughout history war has been a powerful magnet for international media coverage. But what happens when the fighting stops and the news teams pack up for the next high-stakes conflict? In Central America the world stopped watching once the peace accords of the 1990's brought an end to the region's bloody civil wars.

Has the past decade brought peace and democracy to Central America? And what is the legacy of the Central American conflicts–for the region, and for the United States?

GraciasVida Productions, in partnership with Texas Public radio, NPR's Latino USA, Radio Bilingue, Latinos in Public Radio, and Youth Radio's International Desk, has assembled some of public radio's most talented reporters and their Central American colleagues to produce the most comprehensive coverage of Central America in years.

"Despues de las Guerras: Central America After the Wars" is an ambitious, 12-part radio documentary series produced in English and in Spanish by U.S radio reporters and their Central American colleagues–achieving a unique international collaboration.

This series has already aired on more than 200 stations, including KQED, WBEZ, WAMU, and WNYC via Latino USA, Radio Bilingue, and other radio programs. In the Fall of 2005, it will be available as four one-hour Specials.

To most Americans the wars in Central America are nothing more than a distant Cold War memory. Yet the legacy of those wars continues to impact the social fabric of the United States as the Central American population in the U.S. becomes the fastest growing Hispanic group.

"Despues de las Guerras" provides an unprecedented look at the social and political costs of war in Central America, both for the region and for the U.S.

As the war in Iraq proves once again, it is the aftermath of the initial battle that presents the greatest challenge to peace and democracy.

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Produced by GraciasVida Media Center, the independent journalism resource for Latin America.

For more information, contact:
Producer Maria Martin email: graciasvida.media@gmail.com
or telephone: 415.670.9717

Funded by

and the Fund for Investigative Journalism.

© Maria Martin

Photo at top left © Donna DeCesare www.donnadecesare.com