Prominent Mexican columnist, wife, son shot to death
New York, June 20, 2011–A prominent Mexican newspaper columnist, his wife, and a son were shot to death in their home in Veracruz, according to state investigators, a shocking assault that underscores the country’s ongoing crisis. The administration of President Felipe Calderón Hinojosa must take decisive action to end to the cycle of violence undermining…
Missing journalist found dead in Mexico
New York, June 2, 2011–With the news that the body of Noel López Olguín, a Mexican reporter who went missing in March, was found on Tuesday, the Committee to Protect Journalists called on Mexican authorities to thoroughly investigate his murder. López was found Tuesday buried in a clandestine grave in the city of Chinameca, in…
Drug trafficker confesses to killing missing Mexican reporter
New York, June 1, 2011–A drug gang leader confessed on Sunday to killing Mexican reporter Noel López Olguín, a columnist for a small newspaper in the state of Veracruz who went missing in March, according to local press reports. Gustavo Salas, the Mexican federal attorney general’s special prosecutor for crimes against freedom of expression, told…
Making an Impact
CPJ aids 170 journalists worldwide in 2015 Burundi Bob Rugurika CPJ helped cover legal expenses for Rugurika, director of the privately-owned Burundian station Radio Publique Africaine, after he was charged in January 2015 with breach of public solidarity, complicity in murder, and violating the secrecy of an investigation after refusing to reveal the name of…
Mexican journalist held for 25 hours after criticizing mayor
On May 9, 2009, four police officers in masks arrested Simón Tiburcio Chávez, publisher of the monthly newspaper Nuevo Amanecer in Alvarado, a city in the southeastern state of Veracruz. The journalist told CPJ that he was held for 25 hours without charge. Tiburcio said he believes his arrest was retaliation for two photographs published…
Mexican journalist in coma after attack by former official
José Luis Ortega Vidal, 42, editorial director of the daily Notisur in the eastern Mexican state of Veracruz was severely injured after falling off a staircase on the morning of March 3, 2009. He was attempting to flee from a former official who was threatening him and other journalists with a gun, according to witnesses…
Mexican journalists face ever-increasing danger
There is an often-repeated phrase among journalists: No story is worth dying for, we say. But journalists are dying in every region of the world. In Iraq, in Somalia, in Russia, in Bolivia, in the Philippines, journalists died last year while reporting the news in their countries.
Attacks on the Press in 2008: Mexico
Powerful drug cartels and escalating violence made journalists in Mexico more vulnerable to attack than ever before. The dangerous climate was compounded by a pervasive culture of impunity. Most crimes against the press remained unsolved as Mexican law enforcement agencies, awash in corruption, did not aggressively investigate attacks. With no guarantee of safety, reporters increasingly…
Mexican journalists vs. security forces
While organized criminals and drug traffickers account for the bulk of attacks against Mexican journalists, CPJ has documented an increasing number of assaults committed by security forces. Just last week, this reality was brought into sharp focus with the accusation by a reporter that he had been roughed up by the military.