{"id":5817,"date":"2017-09-13T10:00:23","date_gmt":"2017-09-13T14:00:23","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/thediplomaticenvoy.com\/?p=5817"},"modified":"2017-09-13T23:35:26","modified_gmt":"2017-09-14T03:35:26","slug":"no-freedom-in-death-the-killing-epidemic-of-mexican-journalists","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.shu.edu\/thediplomaticenvoy\/2017\/09\/13\/no-freedom-in-death-the-killing-epidemic-of-mexican-journalists\/","title":{"rendered":"No Freedom in Death\u2014The Killing Epidemic of Mexican Journalists"},"content":{"rendered":"

Samantha Stevenson<\/strong>
\nStaff Writer<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

Journalism as a profession is rarely considered among the most dangerous. In democratic nations that uphold some freedom of speech, worry over the safety of those doing the talking is often superfluous. But in Mexico, being a journalist may mean a death sentence. The Committee to Protect Journalists listed Mexico as the most dangerous country for journalists, ahead of countries like Syria and Afghanistan.<\/p>\n

At least 104 journalists have been murdered in Mexican territory since 2000, according to The New York Times, while 25 others have disappeared or been presumed dead. Last year, 11 Mexican journalists were killed, the country\u2019s highest tally this century. If the current trend continues, 2017 will produce the highest journalism-related death rate in Mexico\u2019s history.<\/p>\n

Salvador Adame, director of the local television station 6TV, became the seventh and most recent journalist to be murdered in Mexico this year. According to The Guardian, Adame was abducted on May 18 in the city of Nueva Italia, about 250 miles west of Mexico City. His burnt remains were confirmed through DNA testing on June 14.<\/p>\n

Javier Valdez, who was murdered in May while reporting on drug trafficking, knew the dangers of being a journalist in Mexico all too well. He likened the profession to \u201cbeing put on a blacklist\u201d, The Atlantic reports.<\/p>\n

\u201cEven though you may have bulletproofing and bodyguards, [the gangs] will decide what day they are going to kill you,\u201d said Valdez at a book launch. Less than a year after making that statement, Valdez\u2019s car was gunned down on a busy street by unidentified attackers, says The Atlantic.<\/p>\n

The reasons for the killings are often varied, says the The New York Times. Some killings are carried out by cartels who are annoyed with excessive coverage or by corrupt politicians attempting to silence critics. This year especially, the majority of journalists killed have ties to covering the cartels.<\/p>\n

As Valdez said, the cartels are dangerous territory for any journalist to report. Time reports that cartels often bribe and threaten journalists to not write stories, or to write a version that the cartel wants told. If threats and bribes do not work, the cartels resort to murder and kidnapping.<\/p>\n

Edith L., a Mexican-American student, told The Diplomatic Envoy just how dangerous and powerful the cartels are. \u201cRight now it\u2019s the drug lords that are in charge of Mexico, and they\u2019re in all levels of the country. Whenever a journalist speaks out against the drug lords or the corruption in the government\u2014which is being paid by the drug lords\u2014they are murdered.\u201d<\/p>\n

Edith went on to say, \u201cIf you\u2019re a problem in Mexico, the drug lords get rid of you, and it\u2019s stifling the country. It\u2019s frustrating, demoralizing, and terrifying to see my homeland being destroyed like this from the inside out.\u201d<\/p>\n

According to The Guardian, most murders of journalists go unsolved and unpunished due to state and local governments making advertising conditional on positive press coverage. As a result, they often demonstrate a lack of interest in investigating crimes committed against media workers.<\/p>\n

On top of continued ambivalence towards crimes directed at journalists, the BBC reports that the Mexican government may be spying on journalists, lawyers, and activists fighting gang-related corruption.<\/p>\n

The BBC reports that several prominent journalists and activists accused the government of spying on them by hacking their phones, using a spyware meant to be used against criminals and terrorists. According to The New York Times, the software, Pegasus, can infiltrate smartphones and monitor calls, texts, and other forms of communication. It can also activate a phone\u2019s camera or microphone.<\/p>\n

The New York Times reports that acquiring the judicial approval to hack these phones would be too difficult to obtain. Instead, it is most likely a result of illegal surveillance, a standard practice. This activity, combined with the constant life threats that Mexican journalists are under, can make it demoralizing to work in the country.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is why someone like Jorge Ramos is a hot shot reporter here in the U.S.,\u201d said Edith L., \u201cbut he doesn\u2019t stay in Mexico. He also doesn\u2019t really talk about the drug lords, and doesn\u2019t do reports on them. He\u2019ll talk about the corruption of Mexican politicians, but in the safety of the U.S., which is also frustrating that people like him have to find protection in a country like the U.S. rather than be able to live and thrive in Mexico.\u201d<\/p>\n

Between a lack of activism from outside nations, and their own government not solving the many cases before them, Mexicans are feeling frustrated and afraid.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe have lived in this hell for some time now,\u201d Octavio Bravo told The New York Times. A fellow journalist, Bravo operated in Veracruz last year, one of the most dangerous places to be a reporter in the world. \u201cYou can\u2019t imagine the frustration, the impotence we are feeling.\u201d<\/p>\n

Edith L. suggested legalizing or decriminalizing drugs as a solution to this issue. \u201cIf we legalized drugs, the drug lords\u2019 economy would collapse and they would be unnecessary. Without them, the violence would end. I\u2019m sure there would still be government corruption, but without the violence the Mexican people can do something about it.\u201d<\/p>\n

However, such an act may do more harm than good. Dr. Benjamin Goldfrank, Associate Professor and Department Chair of the School of Diplomacy, believes that decriminalization or legalization alone \u201cwould not be an effective way to take power away from the cartels.\u201d He proposes that a more beneficial solution may be to reduce prison overcrowding and harm to drug addicts and recreational drug users, most of whom \u201cneed treatment not jail.\u201d<\/p>\n

He also made a point that \u201cthe Mexican government’s strategy of going after the heads of drug cartels, like El Chapo, has not worked either.\u00a0 Mexico’s murder rate this year is higher than in recent years and the cartels continue to battle one another for control of territory and drug routes… what has been tried in the past fifteen years or longer has not worked to reduce violence, to reduce drug consumption, or to reduce the power of the cartels.\u201d<\/p>\n

The main problem boils down to a lack of trust in the government, and its complacency in allowing the cartels to continue their violence against any outspoken
\nindividuals. Without the government\u2019s help in keeping reporters safe from violence, journalists are not truly free.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

At least 104 journalists have been murdered in Mexican territory since 2000 making it listed as the most dangerous country for journalists, with several prominent journalists accusing the government of spying on them.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3666,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"colormag_page_container_layout":"default_layout","colormag_page_sidebar_layout":"default_layout","_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[392,1087,1097,384],"tags":[696,698,1100],"class_list":["post-5817","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-featured-sections","category-summer-2017","category-1097","category-americas","tag-journalists","tag-mexico","tag-summer-edition"],"yoast_head":"\nNo Freedom in Death\u2014The Killing Epidemic of Mexican Journalists - 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