In the Americas, various forms of violence and aggression against journalism have prevailed over the past six months. The most extreme expressions were the murders of four journalists and the disappearance of a reporter. However, repression, impunity, harassment of journalists, and obstacles to accessing public information represent a structural problem in many countries in the hemisphere.
Physical attacks, death threats, stigmatization, restrictions, judicial and financial harassment, incursions against media outlets, spikes in aggression during election processes, espionage, blocking, and hacking, among other violations, plague journalism in the region.
During this period, three journalists were murdered in Mexico and one in Colombia, while a reporter from an independent outlet disappeared in Nicaragua.
Stigmatization and discrediting of journalists and media came from politicians, activists, public officials, and interest groups. Harassment and insults against female journalists, mainly through social media, are also concerning. The countries most affected by these issues include Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba, El Salvador, the United States, Mexico, Jamaica, and Nicaragua.
Aggressions against the press arise from diverse political ideologies. In Argentina, President Javier Milei continues his tirades against journalists and media, while in Colombia, President Gustavo Petro similarly uses insults to question the work of journalists.
In the northern part of the continent, attacks on journalists in Canada and the United States, particularly during public protests and demonstrations, are also worrisome. Similar incidents occurred in Bolivia, Brazil, Costa Rica, Cuba, Ecuador, Guatemala, Haiti, Honduras, Mexico, Paraguay, Peru, and Venezuela.
In the United States, former President Donald Trump has continued criticizing the media in the electoral context.
The Chapultepec Index 2024, presented at the assembly, indicated that there are "severe restrictions" on freedom of expression in the Americas and, for the second consecutive year, highlighted a decline in freedom of expression and press.
Cuba, Nicaragua, and Venezuela continue to show constant violations of human rights, leading to the absence of press freedom. In June, Cuban journalist Lázaro Yuri Valle Roca was released from prison and exiled, but his colleague Jorge Bello remains in prison since 2021. In September, a new wave of repression against independent journalism was reported, and the regime continues to ban several journalists from leaving the country while pressuring them to emigrate by renouncing their right to return.
In Nicaragua, journalist Víctor Ticay was released from prison and sent into exile, stripped of his nationality. Journalist Fabiola Tercero has been missing since mid-July. In Venezuela, before, during, and after the electoral process, more than a dozen journalists were arbitrarily detained and accused of incitement to hatred.
In Guatemala, after 812 days of unjust and arbitrary imprisonment, a judge granted house arrest to journalist José Rubén Zamora, founder of elPeriódico. However, the retrial of Zamora continues to be delayed.
In El Salvador, a joint mission from the IAPA and the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) confirmed the climate of pressure against the press and severe restrictions on access to public information. Several media outlets in the Dominican Republic also reported restrictions on access to public information and the coverage of official events.
In Peru, legislative initiatives to silence the press intensified in response to media and journalist reports on irregularities in public office.
In Mexico, the bloodshed in journalism continued with the murders of Alejandro Martínez Noguez, Roberto Figueroa, and Víctor Culebro Morales, while Jaime Vásquez was killed in Colombia amid rising violence in the country. Additionally, during the assembly, on October 17, unidentified individuals fired multiple shots at the building of El Debate newspaper in Sinaloa.
In Haiti, widespread violence by criminal gangs continues to erode the press's ability to inform the public amid deep social and political deterioration. In Jamaica, press freedom violations are related to next year's electoral process, with attempts by supporters of the two main political parties to discredit journalists and media.
In Bolivia, the political crisis generated a wave of violence against journalists, and in Honduras, a recent UN mission warned of the violence faced by journalists, human rights defenders, and environmentalists.
In Paraguay, the government and the ruling party perpetrated the most significant attacks on the press. The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) urged the state to decriminalize defamation. In this context, the acquittal of ABC Color director Natalia Zuccolillo and journalist Juan Carlos Lezcano was confirmed in one of several defamation lawsuits.
In Ecuador, attacks on journalists by public officials and organized crime continued. Several journalists were forced to leave the country due to threats.
In Costa Rica, President Rodrigo Chaves continued his attacks on critical media and journalists during press conferences and public speeches. This violence also translated into discriminatory practices in the distribution of official advertising.
In Brazil, the Supreme Court shut down the social network X for several days, significantly affecting media coverage. On a positive note, the same court ruled that filing numerous lawsuits to coerce a journalist or media outlet constitutes judicial harassment.
In Panama, defamation lawsuits against media and journalists, along with disproportionate financial penalties, pose sustainability challenges for the media. A legal initiative seeks to eliminate the seizure of assets and bank accounts in such litigation.
