“A cross between Christiane Amanpour and a dog with a bone.”
That’s how the Los Angeles Times describes the prominent, hard-hitting journalist Carmen Aristegui, who is famous throughout Mexico for her tough investigations into government corruption.
In addition to blogging at Aristegui Noticias (“News”), Aristegui anchors a news program on CNN Spanish and, up until March, hosted a morning talk show on MVS radio in Mexico City, daily fare for many Mexican commuters.
Last month, MVS radio fired two of her staff investigators — the network says they had used the MVS logo, without authorization, on a new whistle-blowing website, Mexicoleaks.
Those same two journalists had, only four months earlier, revealed a questionable real estate deal involving Mexico’s first lady, former soap opera star Angelica Rivera, and a contracting firm that does lucrative business with the Mexican government.
Months earlier, the same two journalists implicated a leading Mexico City politician in a prostitution ring. He denied the accusation and was later exonerated by an electoral tribunal.
In her March 13 broadcast, Aristegui called for Daniel Lizárraga and Irving Huerta to be reinstated to their jobs. MVS said it would not give into her ultimatum and fired her for “breach of trust” three days later.
Aristegui calls her dismissal is an attack on free speech. Her supporters say they believe the government pressured MVS into firing Aristegui and her team, and have launched a twitter campaign using the hashtag #MexicoWantsAristeguiBack.
See statements by Mexican political analyst, writer, and university professor Denise Dresser and prominent journalist and author, Lydia Cacho, in video below:
MVS insists it is committed to freedom of expression — as, it says, is demonstrated by the fact that Aristegui worked for them in the first place.
All this comes as the government struggles for popularity and public trust ahead of mid-term elections in June. Mexican President Enrique Peña Nieto’s approval rating has slumped dramatically in the wake of the disappearance of 43 students last September from Iguala, in Guerrero State—reportedly at the hands of police officials linked to drug traffickers.
8 responses to “Mexicans Want Carmen Aristegui Back On Air”
What is the name of the contracting firm that does lucrative business with the Mexican government?
thats not totally true
We need Carmen Aristegui, and more like her and other defenders of liberty of expression. We don´t need tyrany, autochratic presidents, emperors, kings, nor othe figures of abuse, totalitarism or facism.
The world is sick and tired of greedy leaders and power abusers. Mexico, which is more than its governments, will prevail. “Rather die standing, than live on our knees”…..Emiliano Zapata.
The majority of Mexicans feel tired seeing year after year the same kind of ”governments”, that takes advantage from ” The Armed Forces Help ” to repress and kill hundreds of thousands of Mexicans citizens. The ” government ” doesn’t like that people like Carmen Aristegui, tell them the grade of corruption the ”government ” has. She’s a real good journalist but the owner of MVS,( from where Carmen was fired ) Joaquín Vargas in order to get Broadband Television Signal Concession from the ”government” accepted to fired Carmen, and some other Special Investigations Journalists. Those young Journalists, investigated how using billions of dollars that was dirty money the politic party PRI, bought the presidency of Mexico almost 3 years ago. The guy that is in charge of the Internal Revenue Service, was Peña Nieto’s campaign chief and he’s a real corrupted liar because he denied that dirty money was used and a year later he accepted that it was true, that dirty money was used ( in Peña Nieto’s campaign ) and nobody did anything even with his confession of wrongdoing, and because of that, the guy ( Peña Nieto ) that is usurping the president of Mexico position sold everything he could to private and foreign companies… And before those young Journalists were fired, they were investigating several cases of corruption that involved Peña Nieto, his wife, ( Angelica Rivera ), Peña Nieto’s campaign chief ( Luis Videgaray ) and the owner ( Hinojosa Cantu ) of IGA, a contractor that made billions of dollars getting illicit contracts with federal and states ”governments”, in exchange Hinojosa Cantu gave some gifts ( houses that costed millions of dollars ) to Peña Nieto and Videgaray. That was the reason why Carmen, and those young Journalists were fired, they touched where the ”government” wound more pain has…
say what MEXICAN want REAL news. don’t all mexicanos watch their TELENOVELAS with their GALAN BLOND_RUBIO white MEXICAN and their HOTTIE GUERA-blond-blueeye-green even mexican and all watch soccer all weekend and then get drunk and beat up their wives or girlfriends and meantime mexican ELITE POLITICOS are becoming MILLIONARES since they got only three or 6 years to do it.
not everyone wants this leftist back on tv, ! she is the voice for the left party!, she is full of herself! she wasn’t fire, she gave MVS an ultimatum after two reporters were fired and be reinstated!!!!!, so they let go, now she campaigning and for her job back, she had a very high salary, she was given a mercedes as part of her salary, and she just wants to become a martyr!, so i don’t believe a word she says,maybe a good reporter you should write both sides!!!!!
Carmen Aristegui was becoming too dangerous for the Mexican Government. So the government executed a plan to reduce her influence by forcing the Company she worked for, MVS, to fire her. Some smoke screen tactics were first implemented, like raising the salary of her and of her teammates, and giving the appearance of good employer-employee relations. Just waiting for the opportunity to create a conflict, which came when the Wiki-leaks, Mex-leak Affair showed up, and then was taken as a pretext to conceal the real reasons for firing her, which are that the Peña Nieta has threatened MVS with tax audits and cancellation of permits to operate, while offering governments tax cuts and other privileges. The classical policy of stick or carrot.
–
So sad, but there is two sides to every stories told. So sad that Latin America Countries has so much resources and potential to have advanced economies that take care of their people.
But the rich figures that by limiting education to the poor, it can continue the suppression and hunger of the many. If you look at some European Countries, we can see that the rich can get richer and the many can live a constable life. (Ex: Germany, Norway, Netherlands)
Mexico has the resources to become a thriving economy for the many, but it continues to be trapped in web of corruption, greed and inhumanity.
Latin America Countries face to a point the same dilemma as Mexico, provided by a history of dictatorships, non-democracies governments and the mentality that the rich can not survive by allowing the many an education and a constable life.
It is so sad. The only way out this is by getting an education and the opportunity for employment to the mass population. But again greed and corruption will not let this happen.