The image of the Shining Path in the international journalism. Analysis of the texts of Simon Strong and Sally Bowen

Abstract

This article addresses the relationship between Peruvian political violence and international communication. It is a study of the non-fiction works of the English correspondents Sally Bowen and Simon Strong. Both authors covered the internal war in Peru between 1988 and 1992. These texts were analyzed following the method of content analysis of a socio-semantic nature. Two works by Sally Bowen were selected: Periodista al fin y al cabo and El Expediente Fujimori, specifically the chapters Territorio enemigos and Presidente Gonzalo were chosen, respectively. In the case of Strong, the book Sendero Luminoso, el movimiento subversive más letal del mundo was analyzed in its entirety. Likewise, the discourse on Shining Path was identified in both authors, finding that Bowen projected an image of “referentiality” of the armed group, while Strong’s projection oscillated between “referentiality” and “heroism.”