By Danielle Gentry and Henry Ortiz
Baltimore Watchdog Staff Writers
One of the biggest threats facing independent journalism in Latin America is the financial pressures that could shutter news organizations and weaken public access to information, a Mexico-based journalists told Towson University students and faculty last Thursday.
Eliezer Budasoff, an editor and co-host of the podcast El hijo who has also served as editor of special projects at El Pais America, said financial instability can drive journalists out of their home countries and can lead to the closure of newspapers and other news outlets.
He pointed to Venezuela as an example of how exile and economic conditions can disrupt journalism, noting that many journalists have been unable to return.
Budasoff spoke via Zoom to students and faculty in Towson’s Liberal Arts building during a talk titled “Threats to Independent Journalism: Perspectives from Latin America.” His speech was followed by a Q&A.
He also described violence and intimidation as another major threat. Budasoff said he lives in Mexico and described the environment for journalists there as dangerous, adding that reporters in parts of the country continue to do their work even when they face serious risk.
During the Q&A, one attendee asked what regular people can do to support independent journalists. Budasoff said support begins with attention by following, sharing and “consuming” independent journalism even for people who cannot contribute financially.
For some students, the discussion highlighted how press freedom and safety issues extend beyond the United States.
Alexandra Momot, a Towson student who attended the talk, said she was struck by Budasoff’s description of journalists being forced to leave their countries.
“I think when he was talking about a lot of other journalists that he knows had to leave their countries… it was really eye opening to the field of journalism,” Momot said.
In 2011 and 2021, Budasoff won the Las Nuevas Plumas Award, a project focused on discovering new authors of narrative journalism in Spanish. He also won the Gabriel Garcia Marquez Journalism Award, which is now known as the Gabo Award.
Budasoff ended on a message of long-term commitment to the work, despite the threats he described.
“Despite all these terrible situations, I have been doing journalism for 27 years, and I am still very happy to do that,” he said, encouraging students interested in journalism to keep working with conviction.
He added that passion and interest can help young reporters push through difficult conditions and build careers where “your voice can be heard.”