When corpses suspended from bridges began to appear on social networks, Mexico has changed in an era of communication by terror. Long discreet, the cartels now exhibit their crimes in broad daylight by broadcasting them on Tiktok, X or Instagram, explains the American monthly magazine The Atlantic. Behind these chilling images, a formidable strategy is emerging.
It all started with drug baron Edgar Valdez Villarreal, nicknamed “La Barbie”, who in 2005 published a video of his torturing gang online and murdering his rivals. Since then, violence has transformed into viral content: boat shopping by boat, bundles of $ 100 and tiger babies … Nothing is left to chance. This online omnipresence makes it possible to shape an image, recruit new members and extend a grip far beyond Mexican borders.
Social networks thus become a battlefield where appearance counts as much as armed power. Cartels compete to attract attention, display their wealth or boast their alleged generosity. These public demonstrations also allow them to establish themselves in new international markets, in particular by recruiting Americans for their drug trafficking.
In 2019, the battle of Culiacán broke out when the Mexican army tried to arrest Ovidio Guzmán López, the son of the famous drug baron Joaquín “El Chapo” Guzmán Loera. Heavily armed, the members of the Sinaloa cartel broadcast their surge of violence in the city live. This demonstration of strength, amplified by social networks, forced the government to release the son of El Chapo.
Influence and terrorize
The digital influence of cartels now exceeds organized crime. Their aesthetics inspires fashion, popular music and even successful series like Narcos Or Breaking Bad. When she left prison, Emma Coronel Aispuro, El Chapo’s wife, has also joined an Instagram influencer to launch a clothing line.
Faced with this phenomenon, the platforms try to censor the most shocking content. However, this strategy remains without success because the cartels are fragmented, change their names and reappear on other social networks, making any moderation almost impossible.
In a country where informing about drug trafficking can cost life, the online presence of cartels is sometimes the only visible trace of their activities. According to Reporters Sans Frontières, Mexico is the third deadliest region for journalists, behind Pakistan and Gaza.
In 2022, nineteen journalists were killed in Mexico, according to the UNESCO Observatory on murdered journalists.
