Journalists - United States
Chelsea Adame, a reporter for the Imperial Valley Press in Central California, talks about her experiences reporting on public safety at the border. Adame discusses the linguistic challenges for non-native Spanish reporters and for changes in the ease of access to information for crimes involving drug offenses. Commenting on how quiet things can be in the region around Baja California, she suggests this might have to do with drug cartels keeping the peace so as not attract attention to their operations. Adame also comments on stylistic differences between reporting by Mexican and American journalists, about the increase of social media use for outreach (particularly Facebook), how female journalists are treated and how journalism school prepares new reporters for work in the region bordering a country that is currently recognized as the world's most dangerous for journalists.
Arturo Bojorquez, the editor for the Adelante Valle newspaper, talks about the misconception that matters in the U.S. side of the border are more stable than on the Mexican side (Calexico). Stating that political and environmental issues are troubling on both sides, he mentions cases of threats to journalist on the U.S. side as well. Bojorque mentions the good relationship enjoyed among journalists in his geographical area and his work battling corruption in journalism. Bojorques goes on to discuss his involvement with the Association of University Journalists, an organization that targets professional and college-trained journalists and which focuses in networking and helping young journalists remain current of ethical standards.
Immigration reporter Jason Buch tells of his experiences covering stories around the Texas border cites, discussing issues of violence and insecurity, especially the “zone of silence” in Coahuila and Tamaulipas. Buch addresses money laundering for the cartels in the United States.
Victor Hugo Castillo, freelance journalist, talks about the advantages that local journalist have when it comes to covering news stories, including knowledge of the language and local culture. The organizer of Border Center for Journalists and Bloggers, Castillo talks about his calling of informing the community and about the job prospects for journalist in the area.
Clark, managing editor for the Nogales International News, discusses the role of social media in border news reporting. He also gives advice to journalists interested in covering border issues, including that they ought to have the language skills, to leave behind preconceived notions of what stories they expect to find, and to invest time to get a feel for this very complex area. Clark talks about collaboration with Mexican reporter César Barrón, and about other challenges faced by border journalism.
Francisco Cabos Cardona, news director for the Texas Valley for Telemundo, recounts the evolution of drug cartels in the north of Mexico and the tactics used to remain in power, including control of the media. Describing the safety measures that journalists under his direction are now forced to take, Cardona recounts various attacks that his news channel and others have suffered and that have never been sufficiently investigated. Cardona finishes up talking about the challenges faced by those covering news in the area.
Foreign correspondent for the Dallas Morning News, Alfredo Corchado discusses his experiences as a journalist in Mexico. Corchado also talks about the challenges of journalism in Mexico, the problems of censorship and freedom of speech. Corchado discusses the violence, corruption and crime in Mexico and how he and his colleagues cope with stress resulting from constantly covering these issues.
Manuel De La Rosa, reporter for the High School Sports Magazine, talks about his career along the border and how the situation has changed over the years. Describing the kind of crimes taking place in the area and how it is hard to trust their sources since they lie to protect their lives.
Armando Durazo, senior editor for El Paso Times and University of Arizona (UA) graduate, talks about his journalistic education in Tucson, both at the UA and Pima Community College (PCC), and how that compares to other journalism programs today. Durazo tells how the violence on the border has fluctuated over his 40 years in the profession, and how the high levels of violence in recent years defies everything he has ever witnessed.
A University of Arizona alumna and originally from central Mexico, Fernanda Echavarri talks about her experiences as a reporter, including feeling safer when reporting in Mexico because she understands the culture and blends in so well. Emphasizing that most of her practical knowledge came from internship and in the field rather than from her academic training, Echevarri discusses that working for Public Media, a news organization with ties to a university, makes it difficult to cover the border region due to the restriction of travel authorizations. Touching on the effect of social media in journalism, Echavarri notes that for her, these tools are best for getting a sense of the situation in the border in real time from a source she can trust. Her advice for new journalists reporting in the border area is not to romanticize the issues, to spend time with the local community, and learning the language.
Lorena Figueroa, journalist with El Paso Times, talks about the violence on both sides of the border, and of the security measures taken, even while living north of the border, since distance alone does not guarantee safety. Figueroa discusses the current wave of violence against minors and women, about the emotional toll to reporters, but in particular to women journalists who are also mothers, and about ways to cope with that kind of stress.
Tim Gutierrez, main anchor and managing editor of KGNS-TV Laredo, TX., talks about the challenges of reporting about the border, the quality of journalism as result, and about threats received over the years. He also mentions the type of violence found in Laredo, the role played in this by the Zetas, and his opinion on the effectiveness of president Peña Nieto's measures to control the situation.
Enrique Lerma, reporter and cameraman for Fox News 48 (Brownsville, TX), talks about his childhood and his experiences in Matamoros, which he calls "the cradle of drug trafficking." Lerma describes the challenges and restrictions that journalists in the area must endure, the safety precautions he takes when on the job, and the link between jailed criminals and border violence.
Richard Marosi, staff writer for Los Angeles Times, talks about the challenges of covering news in Mexico and discusses his observations in regards to the situation faced by his Mexican counterparts . Morosi notes that people in Mexico City do not have any idea of what goes on in the rest of the country, of the impunity and lawlessness that pervades, and of how the lack of news that exposes any of this serves the purpose of Mexican government and thus gets perpetuated.
Richard Montenegro Brown, content editor for the Imperial Valley Press, mentions the differences in reporting on the border pre-9/11 as compared to now, noting how aside from the violence, environmental news is the most covered. When discussing new reporters and what skills are most helpful, Montenegro believes that to be effective when reporting along the border, even in the U.S. side, Spanish language skills are a must, along with institutional memory, to be able to communicate with the community and provide context.
Investigative Reporter for the Houston Chronicle, Lise Olsen, discusses her work as a reporter and a member of the Investigative Reporter and Editors (IRE) organization.
Reporter Monica Ortiz Uribe describes the violence in Juarez and how it has affected everyday life. Ortiz also discusses the fear of many who lived in Juarez and El Paso and how it has affected her work in trying to report the violence in the area.
Reporter with the Nogales International news and UA Alumni, Curtis Prendergast, discusses the challenges in reporting from both sides of the border. Calling Nogales a "sweet spot" since instances of extreme violence are less of an issue there. Prendergast also describes the advantages of using social media to stay in touch with sources and the differences in the way female journalists are treated.
Gustavo Reveles Acosta, discusses in detail his efforts to protect journalists in Juarez after two journalists, one of them a colleague he knew well, were murdered. Acosta, a member of the El Paso Press Club, argues that despite having the border between them, the journalist community in Juarez and El Paso are very close and a sense of brotherhood permeates.
Ernesto Romero, news director for Yuma's television network affiliate stations, discusses the role that social media plays in reporting news along the border, the skills needed for new journalists to be effective when working in the area, and how security concerns have not really been an issue for those working under him. Romero touches on the need to have Spanish newscasts for those in the U.S. who prefer to watch news in that language.
Eduardo Santiago, a new journalist still attending college, talks about his experiences starting in the field, about having the opportunity to report news along the border, and the advantages of working in an area he is from. Santiago also discusses working with reporters from other parts of the U.S. that come to the border to report, and about the effect of social media in his work.
Ella Sogomonian, a new reporter for the ABC and Fox affiliates, talks about her experiences working on the U.S. side of the border, about the advantage of having Spanish language skills, and the challenging and eye-opening experiences that have come from her work among members of the community, particularly migrant workers, and from living in Yuma.
Perla Trevizo, border reporter for the Arizona Daily Star, talks about the greatest challenges and limitations for journalists covering the area, including security measures, changes in reporting methods, and about the effect that social media has had in journalism. Trevizo also touches on the sort of skills required of reporters, including cultural sensitivity, and collaboration of resources and knowledge.
John Vaughn is the editor of Bajo El Sol, the Spanish language edition of the Yuma Sun. Vaughn talks about his readers, the type of stories that his paper reports, en about collaborations with papers across the border. Discussing some of the challenges faced when reporting on the border area and the skills he looks for in new reporters.
Christian Von Preysing-Barry discusses his work as a reporter and multimedia journalist for Laredo local news channel KGNS-TV. Von Preysing-Barry discusses the difficulty and danger of reporting in Tamaulipas and Nuevo Laredo.
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Chelsea Adame, a reporter for the Imperial Valley Press in Central California, talks about her experiences reporting on public safety at the border. Adame discusses the linguistic challenges for non-native Spanish reporters and for changes in the ease of access to information for crimes involving drug offenses. Commenting on how quiet things can be in the region around Baja California, she suggests this might have to do with drug cartels keeping the peace so as not attract attention to their operations. Adame also comments on stylistic differences between reporting by Mexican and American journalists, about the increase of social media use for outreach (particularly Facebook), how female journalists are treated and how journalism school prepares new reporters for work in the region bordering a country that is currently recognized as the world's most dangerous for journalists.
Arturo Bojorquez, the editor for the Adelante Valle newspaper, talks about the misconception that matters in the U.S. side of the border are more stable than on the Mexican side (Calexico). Stating that political and environmental issues are troubling on both sides, he mentions cases of threats to journalist on the U.S. side as well. Bojorque mentions the good relationship enjoyed among journalists in his geographical area and his work battling corruption in journalism. Bojorques goes on to discuss his involvement with the Association of University Journalists, an organization that targets professional and college-trained journalists and which focuses in networking and helping young journalists remain current of ethical standards.
Immigration reporter Jason Buch tells of his experiences covering stories around the Texas border cites, discussing issues of violence and insecurity, especially the “zone of silence” in Coahuila and Tamaulipas. Buch addresses money laundering for the cartels in the United States.
Victor Hugo Castillo, freelance journalist, talks about the advantages that local journalist have when it comes to covering news stories, including knowledge of the language and local culture. The organizer of Border Center for Journalists and Bloggers, Castillo talks about his calling of informing the community and about the job prospects for journalist in the area.
Clark, managing editor for the Nogales International News, discusses the role of social media in border news reporting. He also gives advice to journalists interested in covering border issues, including that they ought to have the language skills, to leave behind preconceived notions of what stories they expect to find, and to invest time to get a feel for this very complex area. Clark talks about collaboration with Mexican reporter César Barrón, and about other challenges faced by border journalism.
Francisco Cabos Cardona, news director for the Texas Valley for Telemundo, recounts the evolution of drug cartels in the north of Mexico and the tactics used to remain in power, including control of the media. Describing the safety measures that journalists under his direction are now forced to take, Cardona recounts various attacks that his news channel and others have suffered and that have never been sufficiently investigated. Cardona finishes up talking about the challenges faced by those covering news in the area.
Foreign correspondent for the Dallas Morning News, Alfredo Corchado discusses his experiences as a journalist in Mexico. Corchado also talks about the challenges of journalism in Mexico, the problems of censorship and freedom of speech. Corchado discusses the violence, corruption and crime in Mexico and how he and his colleagues cope with stress resulting from constantly covering these issues.
Manuel De La Rosa, reporter for the High School Sports Magazine, talks about his career along the border and how the situation has changed over the years. Describing the kind of crimes taking place in the area and how it is hard to trust their sources since they lie to protect their lives.
Armando Durazo, senior editor for El Paso Times and University of Arizona (UA) graduate, talks about his journalistic education in Tucson, both at the UA and Pima Community College (PCC), and how that compares to other journalism programs today. Durazo tells how the violence on the border has fluctuated over his 40 years in the profession, and how the high levels of violence in recent years defies everything he has ever witnessed.
A University of Arizona alumna and originally from central Mexico, Fernanda Echavarri talks about her experiences as a reporter, including feeling safer when reporting in Mexico because she understands the culture and blends in so well. Emphasizing that most of her practical knowledge came from internship and in the field rather than from her academic training, Echevarri discusses that working for Public Media, a news organization with ties to a university, makes it difficult to cover the border region due to the restriction of travel authorizations. Touching on the effect of social media in journalism, Echavarri notes that for her, these tools are best for getting a sense of the situation in the border in real time from a source she can trust. Her advice for new journalists reporting in the border area is not to romanticize the issues, to spend time with the local community, and learning the language.
Lorena Figueroa, journalist with El Paso Times, talks about the violence on both sides of the border, and of the security measures taken, even while living north of the border, since distance alone does not guarantee safety. Figueroa discusses the current wave of violence against minors and women, about the emotional toll to reporters, but in particular to women journalists who are also mothers, and about ways to cope with that kind of stress.
Tim Gutierrez, main anchor and managing editor of KGNS-TV Laredo, TX., talks about the challenges of reporting about the border, the quality of journalism as result, and about threats received over the years. He also mentions the type of violence found in Laredo, the role played in this by the Zetas, and his opinion on the effectiveness of president Peña Nieto's measures to control the situation.
Enrique Lerma, reporter and cameraman for Fox News 48 (Brownsville, TX), talks about his childhood and his experiences in Matamoros, which he calls "the cradle of drug trafficking." Lerma describes the challenges and restrictions that journalists in the area must endure, the safety precautions he takes when on the job, and the link between jailed criminals and border violence.
Richard Marosi, staff writer for Los Angeles Times, talks about the challenges of covering news in Mexico and discusses his observations in regards to the situation faced by his Mexican counterparts . Morosi notes that people in Mexico City do not have any idea of what goes on in the rest of the country, of the impunity and lawlessness that pervades, and of how the lack of news that exposes any of this serves the purpose of Mexican government and thus gets perpetuated.
Richard Montenegro Brown, content editor for the Imperial Valley Press, mentions the differences in reporting on the border pre-9/11 as compared to now, noting how aside from the violence, environmental news is the most covered. When discussing new reporters and what skills are most helpful, Montenegro believes that to be effective when reporting along the border, even in the U.S. side, Spanish language skills are a must, along with institutional memory, to be able to communicate with the community and provide context.
Investigative Reporter for the Houston Chronicle, Lise Olsen, discusses her work as a reporter and a member of the Investigative Reporter and Editors (IRE) organization.
Reporter Monica Ortiz Uribe describes the violence in Juarez and how it has affected everyday life. Ortiz also discusses the fear of many who lived in Juarez and El Paso and how it has affected her work in trying to report the violence in the area.
Reporter with the Nogales International news and UA Alumni, Curtis Prendergast, discusses the challenges in reporting from both sides of the border. Calling Nogales a "sweet spot" since instances of extreme violence are less of an issue there. Prendergast also describes the advantages of using social media to stay in touch with sources and the differences in the way female journalists are treated.
Gustavo Reveles Acosta, discusses in detail his efforts to protect journalists in Juarez after two journalists, one of them a colleague he knew well, were murdered. Acosta, a member of the El Paso Press Club, argues that despite having the border between them, the journalist community in Juarez and El Paso are very close and a sense of brotherhood permeates.
Ernesto Romero, news director for Yuma's television network affiliate stations, discusses the role that social media plays in reporting news along the border, the skills needed for new journalists to be effective when working in the area, and how security concerns have not really been an issue for those working under him. Romero touches on the need to have Spanish newscasts for those in the U.S. who prefer to watch news in that language.
Eduardo Santiago, a new journalist still attending college, talks about his experiences starting in the field, about having the opportunity to report news along the border, and the advantages of working in an area he is from. Santiago also discusses working with reporters from other parts of the U.S. that come to the border to report, and about the effect of social media in his work.
Ella Sogomonian, a new reporter for the ABC and Fox affiliates, talks about her experiences working on the U.S. side of the border, about the advantage of having Spanish language skills, and the challenging and eye-opening experiences that have come from her work among members of the community, particularly migrant workers, and from living in Yuma.
Perla Trevizo, border reporter for the Arizona Daily Star, talks about the greatest challenges and limitations for journalists covering the area, including security measures, changes in reporting methods, and about the effect that social media has had in journalism. Trevizo also touches on the sort of skills required of reporters, including cultural sensitivity, and collaboration of resources and knowledge.
John Vaughn is the editor of Bajo El Sol, the Spanish language edition of the Yuma Sun. Vaughn talks about his readers, the type of stories that his paper reports, en about collaborations with papers across the border. Discussing some of the challenges faced when reporting on the border area and the skills he looks for in new reporters.
Christian Von Preysing-Barry discusses his work as a reporter and multimedia journalist for Laredo local news channel KGNS-TV. Von Preysing-Barry discusses the difficulty and danger of reporting in Tamaulipas and Nuevo Laredo.