Congratulations to the University of Texas El Paso’s Zita Arocha and Dino Chiecchi, who have brought out a 100-question guide about the Borderlands world that straddles the U.S.-Mexico line.
There is no way that we at Michigan State, near the northern border, could ever do the wonderful job that Arocha, Chiecchi and many UTEP students did in producing this vibrant, thought-provoking guide.
True Border: 100 Questions and Answers about the U.S.-Mexico Frontera is just the latest manifestation of Arocha’s long labor of love with Borderzine, a teaching/publishing concept she founded in 2008. Bias Busters could not be more flattered or humbled than to have played a small role in what Arocha and Chiecchi are calling Bias Busters book 17.
They have stayed true to the original concept of having journalism students answer the simple, everyday questions people ask, but they have added verve, color, poetry (yes!) and more digital content. We might call it Bias Busters No. 1.
Their publication, which will now educate us about new approaches, was funded by an Online News Association challenge grant.
We would be excited to see other universities pick up this concept and expand the series. We would love to join Arocha and Chiecchi as coaches.
Our related “100 Questions and Answers About Hispanics and Latinos” is available from Amazon or the Front Edge Publishing bookstore.
