Sala negra’, narrative and investigative journalism to unravel violence in central america

Abstract

Launched in 2010 as a section of the Salvadoran digital newspaper El Faro, Sala Negra has become a fundamental reference to unravel the keys of the violence in Central America. Based on a qualitative methodology, this article analyzes a dozen long-lived texts on gangs, human trafficking, prisons or abuses by security forces. Results highlight that, unlike the objectivist options of the Anglo-Saxon press, the techniques of narrative journalism contribute to enhance texts based on in-depth research, in line with the first muckakers.