In the span of a week, two respected journalists in Central America have died under mysterious circumstances. Journalists associations in Guatemala and El Salvador are calling on authorities to solve the deaths of television director Víctor Hugo Valdez and television producer Pedro Antonio Portillo, respectively.
In one of the most violent events for the press this year in the Venezuelan capital of Caracas, at least 19 media workers were attacked while covering protests taking place on June 2, according to the human rights advocacy organization Espacio Público.
The newspaper Extra from Rio de Janeiro is known internationally as a pioneer in the use of digital messaging platforms, especially WhatsApp, in order to communicate with thousands of its readers. However, Extra said that more than 70,000 of its readers who access their WhatsApp accounts have been hampered by the sudden cancellation of the newspaper’s numbers on the messaging platform because robots have identified them as possible spam.
More than half of the deaths registered this year occurred in only two countries: Mexico (9) and Guatemala (5). Homicides and deaths were also reported in Honduras (3), El Salvador (3), Brazil (2) and Venezuela (2). Perpetrators were identified in only five cases.
The Panama Papers, the biggest leak in journalism’s history, led to a global investigative effort joined by about 100 Latin American journalists who were able to untangle how fiscal paradises work. Under the leadership of Spanish journalist Mar Cabra, the global data team from the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ) was the brain behind the investigation that required an analysis of 11.5 million documents; the team proved that knowing how to deal with big data has become essential to investi
Journalist Ricardo Melo will be reappointed to the post of CEO of the Brazilian Communications Company (EBC for its acronym in Portuguese) after being removed more than two weeks ago by the country’s interim president. On Thursday, June 2, judge of the Federal Supreme Court (STF) Dias Toffoli granted an injunction authorizing Melo to return to work.
After two Bolivian government officials made statements against Carlos Valverde, the journalist decided to leave the country for what he considered threats against him, according to what he told newspaper El Deber.
Two Latin American journalists will be recognized this year at the rededication of the Journalists Memorial of the Newseum, a U.S.-based museum and institute dedicated to freedom of expression.
Investigative pieces using data journalism from media outlets in Argentina, Brazil, Mexico, Peru and Bolivia are nominated among finalists in various categories for the Data Journalism Awards 2016, which have been organized by the Global Editors Network (GEN) since 2011.
At the 15th Session of the Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues at the United Nations, Anselmo Xunic, president of Asociación Sobrevivencia Cultural in Guatemala, asked the forum to recognize the new Caucus on Alternative Information and Communication of Indigenous Peoples.
Peruvian journalist Mabel Cáceres will receive the Courage in Journalism Award from the International Women’s Media Foundation (IWMF), which has been awarding women journalists who stand out for their “extraordinary bravery” since 1990.
A new research released on May 24 provides an overview of digital media outlets in Brazil, and shows that, among other features, these initiatives share an absence of previous major planning and a revenue still closely linked to advertising and content sales.