Violence Against Mexican Journalists Has Created An Information Vacuum

AUSTIN, Texas, July 11, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- More journalists have been killed in Mexico in the past decade than in Afghanistan, according to Reporters Without Borders, making it one of the most dangerous countries in the world for media. Threats and intimidation tactics by Mexican cartels have made it exceedingly difficult to report on the drug war, leaving those with business interests, investments and operations in the country with few resources for the information they need to make informed decisions and protect their assets.

Today, Stratfor, a U.S.-based intelligence company, is launching a new product, the Mexico Security Monitor, designed to help fill the information vacuum created by violence against journalists in Mexico. Customers will receive daily summaries of violence and threats, real-time alerts, weekly analysis and quarterly reports, providing a comprehensive view of the drug war. They will also be able to participate in webcasts with prominent security experts like Scott Stewart, a former special agent with the U.S. State Department, seen here in a video describing the Mexico Security Monitor: http://www.stratfor.com/msm

Stratfor can provide this hard-to-find information precisely because it is not a traditional media outlet. The company has:

• Sources on both sides of the border who won't talk to traditional media
• The resources to process troves of open-source and human-source information daily
• A proven analytical methodology developed through 16 years of professional consulting

The Mexico Security Monitor will be essential for various types of organizations with interests or operations in volatile regions of the country. It will allow manufacturers (maquiladoras), multinational corporations, universities and others to monitor and predict violence in areas where employees and executives travel. It will also inform business decisions by providing clear intelligence about the levels of violence and crime in specific cities and will put individual incidents into context within the evolving Mexican cartel picture.

No stranger to the drug war, Stratfor has been publishing reports and advising companies on the Mexico security situation for years. Beyond Mexico, Stratfor provides consulting services and customized reports on regions and industries across the globe for organizations demanding highly specialized information. Its popular consumer product, a subscription-only website (www.stratfor.com), provides analysis and forecasting of global security, military, political, energy and economic developments. The Mexico Security Monitor will provide the in-depth information that high-end customers require, but at a more affordable price than custom consulting products. For more product information, visit: http://www.stratfor.com/msm

"The Mexico Security Monitor is a really exciting product because it's within the budget of many small- to medium-sized organizations, but it still offers the quality of intelligence that our more specialized customers have come to rely on," said Scott Stewart, Stratfor Vice President.

About Stratfor:

Stratfor is a privately owned global intelligence company. Individual subscribers and institutional customers use our services to gain a thorough understanding of world events, as well as actionable insight to meet their global business objectives. We use a unique, intelligence-based approach to gathering information via rigorous open-source monitoring and a global network of human sources. Analysts then assess and filter intelligence in real-time to determine how developments affect different regions, industries and markets. Key services include website access to our published reports, as well as custom projects and executive briefings.

SOURCE Stratfor