Who is Azucena Uresti, The Journalist Threatened By The CJNG?

"Sol Prendido" for Borderland Beat

The journalist and host became a trend after her participation in the first presidential debate of 2018

In the early hours of this August 9, journalist Azucena Uresti was threatened by Nemesio Rubén Oseguera, alias El Mencho, leader of the Jalisco New Generation Cartel (CJNG), through a video published on social networks.

Considered one of the most important women on Mexican television, Azucena Uresti Mireles became a national trend after the intense questions she raised in the first presidential debate of 2018.

Since 2014, the native of Monterrey has been a journalist and titular host of the 9:00 p.m. news program of Grupo Milenio: a medium of which she also participated for its creation in 2008.

A graduate with honors from the Faculty of Communication Sciences of the Autonomous University of Nuevo León (UANL), her journalistic career began behind the scenes as an editor and news producer for Terra Networks Mexico, one of the pioneering sites in Internet transmissions.

It was in 2005 when she began her first directing work at Grupo Multimedios Radio, at the same time that she continued with the editor part on her digital portals. For 2006, she jumped to television by conducting the informative spaces of Teledario Night Weekend version, Express, Last Hour and Institutional.

In 2020, at least four journalists were victims of targeted attacks and a fifth died shot after photographing a crime scene in Mexico.

Meanwhile, the Protection Mechanism for Human Rights Defenders and Journalists of the Ministry of the Interior (Segob) recognized on July 12 that since December 2018 to date 68 activists and 45 journalists have been killed.

Ricardo López, a journalist now deceased from Guaymas, joined the unfortunate list on July 26 when he was murdered in the parking lot of the Ley Marseille shopping center, where, minutes before, he celebrated his birthday.

His murder occurred despite the fact that he already had records of complaints filed with the Attorney General's Office (FGR): on March 29, he declared that he was the victim of threats and harassment from criminal groups.

On Monday, July 19, the journalist, Abraham Mendoza Mendoza, was also murdered, in a situation similar to López: he was intercepted in a parking lot on Madero Poniente Avenue, in the city of Morelia, Michoacán, according to reports from the police authorities of the entity.

According to witnesses, the attackers approached and later shot him at close range when he left a gym, in the vicinity of the Obelisk to Lázaro Cárdenas, in the Bocanegra neighborhood. It was also reported that a civilian was injured by a stray bullet.

Currently, the Protection Mechanism includes 1,478 people (including 468 women) concentrated in six states: Mexico City, Puebla, Guerrero, Guanajuato, Colima and Guerrero.

To date, it is believed that several of the murders of journalists have been ordered by drug trafficking organizations, people with dishonest businesses or corrupt officials, however relatively few of those cases have been resolved.

Infobae