July 29, 2026.
July 29, 2026.
Good morning.
It is a great pleasure to welcome you to SIPConnect 2026. Thank you for being here, for traveling from different countries, and for bringing to this gathering your questions, your experiences, and, above all, your willingness to contribute. Over the next few days, we will discuss innovation, artificial intelligence, audiences, sustainability, and new models for journalism. But before we enter those conversations, I would like to describe the context in which they are taking place. Because to innovate today means responding to a climate of democratic erosion and growing restrictions on freedom of expression.
We meet amid a marked deterioration and significant regression of freedom of expression across much of the continent.
We see governments seeking to weaken institutional checks and balances; leaders who turn the press into an adversary; stigmatization campaigns that pave the way for censorship; laws and judicial processes used to intimidate; surveillance, threats, violence, and impunity. In some countries, persecution is open and brutal.
And we must say this clearly: the United States is not immune to this trend. The state of press freedom in this country is serious. Pressure against journalists, lawsuits against media outlets, hostile rhetoric, attempts to discredit independent information, and restrictions on access to information are warning signs we cannot minimize. When these developments occur in a democracy with enormous global influence, their impact goes beyond its borders. What becomes normalized here can serve as justification elsewhere.
Defending freedom of expression, therefore, is not a ceremonial slogan. It is a concrete, everyday task. It is defended by guaranteeing access to information, protecting the confidentiality of sources, rejecting violence, combating impunity, and upholding editorial independence. It is also defended by building viable media organizations. A financially fragile outlet is more vulnerable to political pressure, concentrated interests, and the temptation to sacrifice quality in order to survive.
This is where SIPConnect takes on special meaning. Innovation is not just about adopting a new tool or following the latest trend. It is about expanding our capacity to investigate, verify, and explain. It is about finding ways to reach communities that have lost trust in institutions. It is about understanding audiences more deeply without reducing them to mere data. It is about creating revenue models that protect editorial autonomy. And it is about using technology without abandoning human judgment, transparency, or responsibility.
In this room, media organizations of very different scales, traditions, and economic realities come together. That diversity is a strength. No one has all the answers. Some have found new ways to produce video; others are experimenting with artificial intelligence, memberships, events, specialized products, or partnerships. What makes SIPConnect valuable is that it allows us to share not only what has worked, but also what has not. Real innovation requires curiosity, but also humility.
I would like to make a very special mention of the journalists who are with us today and who are part of the Latin American Network of Journalism in Exile (RELPEX). Their presence honors us and, at the same time, challenges us. The forced displacement of journalists and media outlets has grown into one of the most serious phenomena in our region. Hundreds of colleagues have been forced into exile, displacement, or relocation of their operations, mainly from Cuba, Venezuela, Nicaragua, El Salvador, Guatemala, and Ecuador. Behind each figure there is a dismantled newsroom, a separated family, a life rebuilt, and an audience at risk of being left without information.
Yet these journalists have not stopped doing journalism. From exile, they continue to investigate, publish, and challenge the information blackouts imposed by authoritarian regimes. Their work shows that journalism can be expelled from a territory, but not necessarily silenced. Our responsibility is to ensure they do not face this task alone: we must offer professional networks, training, security, and spaces so that their voices continue to reach the societies they were forced to leave.
I invite you, then, to make the most of these days with generosity and a critical spirit. Ask questions, challenge ideas, share, and build partnerships. Take away concrete ideas, but also new connections and renewed convictions. Let every conversation help us build stronger, more independent media, closer to their audiences and better prepared to face the threats ahead.
On behalf of the Inter American Press Association, I would like to express our deep gratitude to those who make SIPConnect 2026 possible: Google News Initiative, Grupo de Medios Panorama, ABC Color, TV Azteca, Protecmedia, Xalok, Chartbeat, AFP, WordPress VIP, Infobae, Síntesis, Reuters, Personal Redacciones 5G, Associated Press, Los Rostros, El Nacional de Paraguay, Knight Foundation, Banreservas, De Último Minuto, Waypoint, Aplay, The New York Times, 24ora, Telemundo, La Silla Rota, Mustang Cloud, Los Tiempos, El Demócrata, El Veedor Digital, Comment News, and Hispano Post. Their support not only makes this conference possible; it represents a concrete commitment to innovation, sustainability, and the future of journalism.
Thank you very much for joining us. Welcome to SIPConnect 2026.
