When we first saw the Big Bend Sentinel’s Facebook post praising a Border Patrol agent for helping a stranded motorist on Highway 67, we flagged it as a textbook example of copaganda—the kind of feel-good law enforcement story often used to distract from deeper accountability issues.
To be clear, copaganda isn’t always false. In fact, it’s usually true—but selectively. It often shows law enforcement in heroic moments, while omitting stories about misconduct, surveillance, racial profiling, or abuse of power. These narratives typically come from paid public affairs professionals—like the Big Bend Sector Border Patrol spokesperson, who is employed full-time to post stories about helpful agents, “horse of the week,” emotional support poodles, and other image-building content. In major cities like Houston, there are likely 100+ PR staff across law enforcement agencies working the same playbook.
So when we saw the Sentinel’s post—devoid of broader context—we called it out as copaganda.
But we’ve since learned that this post wasn’t that.
The Sentinel’s editor personally emailed us after our post went up. He told us he had taken the photo himself—he was driving along Highway 67 when he happened upon the good deed and snapped the image. We immediately called him back, and we appreciated the professionalism and transparency. We promised we’d set the record straight—and we are.
This Isn’t About One Post. It’s About the Pattern.
We just finished reading Copaganda, the book that explores how these stories, even when genuine, can act like media sugar—sweet, shareable, and soothing—but incomplete. They give a warm glow without acknowledging the larger ecosystem of policing, particularly in areas where civil rights complaints, racial profiling, and overreach go underreported.
And let’s be honest—how many stories have you seen lately from small-town papers or regional media outlets that:
- Investigate use-of-force incidents?
- Follow up on unlawful detentions or unconstitutional searches?
- Cover the experiences of migrants beyond photo ops?
That’s why this conversation matters.
We Stand by the Conversation, and We Appreciate the Clarity
We give credit where it’s due: the Sentinel’s editor wasn’t amplifying a press release or spin—he was documenting a moment he witnessed. And we respect that.
But it doesn’t change the broader issue: there is a paid federal staffer in our region whose job is to produce law-enforcement fluff content. If outlets don’t apply journalistic rigor—or at least context—those narratives become the only ones people see. And that’s how copaganda wins.
We hope this moment encourages all of us in local media to do two things:
- Check ourselves—and each other—with respect.
- Tell the full story, not just the photo-worthy part.
