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Killing the Story: Journalists Risking Their Lives to Uncover the Truth in Mexico
A harrowing and unforgettable look at reporting in Mexico, one of the world's most dangerous countries to be a journalist
In 2017, Mexico edged out Iraq and Syria as the deadliest country in the world in which to be a reporter, with at least fourteen journalists killed over the course of the year. The following year another ten journalists were murdered, joining the almost 150 reporters who have been killed since the mid-2000s in a wave of violence that has accompanied Mexico's war on drugs.
In Killing the Story, award-winning journalist and filmmaker Témoris Grecko reveals how journalists are risking their lives to expose crime and corruption. From the streets of Veracruz to the national television studios of Mexico City, Grecko writes about the heroic work of reporters at all levels--from the local self-trained journalist, Moises Sanchez, whose body was found dismembered by the side of a road after he reported on corruption by the state's governor, to high-profile journalists such as Javier Valdez Cárdenas, gunned down in the streets of Sinaloa, and Carmen Aristegui, battling the forces attempting to censor her.
In the vein of Charles Bowden's Murder City and Anna Politskaya's A Russian Diary, Killing the Story is a powerful memorial to the work of Grecko's lost colleagues, which shows a country riven by brutality, hypocrisy, and corruption, and sheds a light on how those in power are bent on silencing those determined to reveal the truth and bring an end to corruption.
In 2017, Mexico edged out Iraq and Syria as the deadliest country in the world in which to be a reporter, with at least fourteen journalists killed over the course of the year. The following year another ten journalists were murdered, joining the almost 150 reporters who have been killed since the mid-2000s in a wave of violence that has accompanied Mexico's war on drugs.
In Killing the Story, award-winning journalist and filmmaker Témoris Grecko reveals how journalists are risking their lives to expose crime and corruption. From the streets of Veracruz to the national television studios of Mexico City, Grecko writes about the heroic work of reporters at all levels--from the local self-trained journalist, Moises Sanchez, whose body was found dismembered by the side of a road after he reported on corruption by the state's governor, to high-profile journalists such as Javier Valdez Cárdenas, gunned down in the streets of Sinaloa, and Carmen Aristegui, battling the forces attempting to censor her.
In the vein of Charles Bowden's Murder City and Anna Politskaya's A Russian Diary, Killing the Story is a powerful memorial to the work of Grecko's lost colleagues, which shows a country riven by brutality, hypocrisy, and corruption, and sheds a light on how those in power are bent on silencing those determined to reveal the truth and bring an end to corruption.
240 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 2018
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Displaying 1 - 16 of 16 reviews
August 18, 2020
"You don't see the warning signs because you get carried away by this dynamic, this cycle of information and violence." -- Killing the Story (Témoris Grecko)
Police without uniform, abducting and attacking peaceful protestors and members of the press. Criminal punishment for those who confess (falsely) under duress. An epidemic that politicians refuse to acknowledge as a threat because it'll hurt the country's economy. Is this story about life in the USA today? No, it's about Mexico only six years ago.
You will enjoy this book if...
* You are an American who is waiting for "the warning sign" before you start worrying 'too much'
* You are a firm believer in free speech
* You have an interest in the political climate of Mexico
and/or
* You enjoy stories of journalism
This book may be dense at times but is an incredibly important and relevant read for my American friends. Thank you to NetGalley for the advanced reading copy in exchange for an honest review. I'm incredibly thankful to have picked-up this book. This has permanently change how I spend my money with businesses, how I vote, and what I'm willing to do to keep my freedom of speech.
Police without uniform, abducting and attacking peaceful protestors and members of the press. Criminal punishment for those who confess (falsely) under duress. An epidemic that politicians refuse to acknowledge as a threat because it'll hurt the country's economy. Is this story about life in the USA today? No, it's about Mexico only six years ago.
You will enjoy this book if...
* You are an American who is waiting for "the warning sign" before you start worrying 'too much'
* You are a firm believer in free speech
* You have an interest in the political climate of Mexico
and/or
* You enjoy stories of journalism
This book may be dense at times but is an incredibly important and relevant read for my American friends. Thank you to NetGalley for the advanced reading copy in exchange for an honest review. I'm incredibly thankful to have picked-up this book. This has permanently change how I spend my money with businesses, how I vote, and what I'm willing to do to keep my freedom of speech.
August 10, 2020
3.5 stars
An informative and sometimes harsh read about the corruption and lawlessness that exists in some of the cities in Mexico. Most importantly, it is a book about the journalists who have a passion to investigate and inform their readers about the unfairness and brutality that exists around them.
The author is a filmmaker and journalist himself, who writes about the high-profile journalists and reporters he knew and looked up to and how their experiences in writing the truth got them killed or kidnapped. Mexican journalists often put their lives at risk, at least the ones who spoke against the corrupt governments, drug cartels and police. Their work, their families and their lives were affected in one way or another, often without any justice.
Killing the Story has given a true, compassionate and honest voice to those reporters and journalists who lost their lives too soon all in the name of writing the truth.
Thank you Netgalley, publisher and author.
An informative and sometimes harsh read about the corruption and lawlessness that exists in some of the cities in Mexico. Most importantly, it is a book about the journalists who have a passion to investigate and inform their readers about the unfairness and brutality that exists around them.
The author is a filmmaker and journalist himself, who writes about the high-profile journalists and reporters he knew and looked up to and how their experiences in writing the truth got them killed or kidnapped. Mexican journalists often put their lives at risk, at least the ones who spoke against the corrupt governments, drug cartels and police. Their work, their families and their lives were affected in one way or another, often without any justice.
Killing the Story has given a true, compassionate and honest voice to those reporters and journalists who lost their lives too soon all in the name of writing the truth.
Thank you Netgalley, publisher and author.
December 25, 2021
Estos comentarios son sobre la traducción al español de este libro.
No se mata la verdad es un libro repleto de datos, anécdotas y opiniones. Por su título una puede pensar que se trata de una colección de reportajes sobre los casos recientes de violencia contra periodistas en México, a la manera del documental del mismo título, lanzado en 2018.
Si este libro compilara estos reportajes, compartiría anaquel al lado de otro trabajo que de manera reciente documenta con crónicas y reportajes la experiencia del periodismo en contextos violentos: Narcoperiodismo, de Javier Valdez.
No es que no tenga mucho de eso. Pero, además, la narración en el trabajo de Témoris se desarrolla en tres capas:
Una primera capa intenta narrar distintas historias que involucran a periodistas, demostrando que cuando hablamos de periodismo no se trata de uno, sino de muchos periodismos mexicanos.
Una segunda capa, proporciona una perspectiva de primera persona. Se trata de la experiencia de un periodista activista.
En una tercera capa se narra y se explica el entorno histórico, político, económico, en que emergen y persisten aquellos periodismos mexicanos.
Decía que la primera es sobre los periodismos mexicanos. En plural. No hay un periodismo, mucho menos un periodismo mexicano. Creo que recordar esto facilita definir, conversar, debatir… incluso teorizar.
El libro de Témoris pinta un lienzo donde aparecen representados los tres periodismos.
En los estados, el brutal asedio del gobierno de Javier Duarte a la prensa en Veracruz. Al norte, las historias de Javier Valdez y Miroslava Breach. Al sur, el de Pedro Canché. El periodismo acosado.
La iniciativa y represalias contra Lydia Cacho, Laura Castellanos, Carmen Aristegui. Periodismo responsivo.
La corrupción en el caso de Florence Cassez y el desmesurado gasto público en propaganda, la historia de la metamorfosis de Carlos Marín y Ciro Gómez Leyva, la hipocresía machista de los medios. El periodismo colaborador.
Así, se perfila la complejidad del panorama periodístico en el país. Ni un país por completo atrasado; ni un oasis de libertad interrumpido por desiertos de silencio para el ejercicio periodístico. No un conflicto en donde corruptos y autoritarios son los únicos culpables, sino variadas limitaciones enraizadas en nuestra historia, en nuestra cultura política, en la economía política y en las políticas de un empresariado acostumbrado a privilegios.
Pero esta no es una colección de historias sobre los periodismos que pretenda ser indiferente, objetiva y fría. Son más bien textos y notas que construyen la realidad desde la mirada de un periodista. En particular, un periodista activista.
Hay una veta biográfica en el relato que le brinda honestidad y originalidad.
Por un lado, se reitera de manera constante que el autor es un personaje dentro del relato con una agenda y una postura ante cada uno de los temas. El reconocimiento de los errores propios —los acobardamientos, los osos y gafes— humanizan y levantan una plataforma desde la cual son más convincentes los señalamientos directos de las transgresiones no solo de políticos impresentables, sino también de periodistas, opinadores y dueños de medios, rompiendo la máxima aquella de “perro no come perro”: transgresiones como no verificar los datos, mentir, ser propagandista del gobierno, chantajear, desprestigiar a víctimas...
La experiencia internacional como periodista de guerra brinda una perspectiva original (al menos en México).
Varias viñetas, situadas en países como Libia y Congo, se leen como literatura de viajes.
Se compara la experiencia mexicana con la situación de países con conflictos armados, pero el relato no se queda en constatar que en México hay una guerra, postura fácil que daría carpetazo al problema de cómo conceptuar la violencia en México.
Entonces, ¿qué aporta comparar a México con el norte de África? Comparar a periodistas del interior de México con periodistas de guerra en el norte de África enfatiza la imposibilidad de abandonar el conflicto y el heroísmo de quienes se atreven a contrariar a élites políticas y económicas sin frenos. El trabajo de educación sentimental humaniza a víctimas. Nos entera de las condiciones en que personas practican el periodismo, el significado que le dan y la pasión con que lo hacen.
Finalmente, esta colección de textos y notas requiere de ciertas explicaciones sobre el entorno en que se practican estos periodismos.
Sobresalen en esta vertiente las reflexiones sobre la naturaleza y el origen de la violencia de la delincuencia organizada en México que lo hallan en una combinación de procesos de corrupción de las élites, auge del neoliberalismo y una estrategia ideal para despojar a comunidades.
Finalmente, como he mencionado, el libro cubre en sus capítulos demasiados frentes: distintos periodismos, en distintos contextos históricos y geográficos, a veces desde la anécdota personal, en otras ocasiones desde la investigación periodística o desde los datos históricos. El problema de lo anterior es que muchas veces se pierde el hilo conductor y los capítulos pierden su unidad temática al estar saltando constantemente de tema en tema.
No se mata la verdad es un libro repleto de datos, anécdotas y opiniones. Por su título una puede pensar que se trata de una colección de reportajes sobre los casos recientes de violencia contra periodistas en México, a la manera del documental del mismo título, lanzado en 2018.
Si este libro compilara estos reportajes, compartiría anaquel al lado de otro trabajo que de manera reciente documenta con crónicas y reportajes la experiencia del periodismo en contextos violentos: Narcoperiodismo, de Javier Valdez.
No es que no tenga mucho de eso. Pero, además, la narración en el trabajo de Témoris se desarrolla en tres capas:
Una primera capa intenta narrar distintas historias que involucran a periodistas, demostrando que cuando hablamos de periodismo no se trata de uno, sino de muchos periodismos mexicanos.
Una segunda capa, proporciona una perspectiva de primera persona. Se trata de la experiencia de un periodista activista.
En una tercera capa se narra y se explica el entorno histórico, político, económico, en que emergen y persisten aquellos periodismos mexicanos.
Decía que la primera es sobre los periodismos mexicanos. En plural. No hay un periodismo, mucho menos un periodismo mexicano. Creo que recordar esto facilita definir, conversar, debatir… incluso teorizar.
El libro de Témoris pinta un lienzo donde aparecen representados los tres periodismos.
En los estados, el brutal asedio del gobierno de Javier Duarte a la prensa en Veracruz. Al norte, las historias de Javier Valdez y Miroslava Breach. Al sur, el de Pedro Canché. El periodismo acosado.
La iniciativa y represalias contra Lydia Cacho, Laura Castellanos, Carmen Aristegui. Periodismo responsivo.
La corrupción en el caso de Florence Cassez y el desmesurado gasto público en propaganda, la historia de la metamorfosis de Carlos Marín y Ciro Gómez Leyva, la hipocresía machista de los medios. El periodismo colaborador.
Así, se perfila la complejidad del panorama periodístico en el país. Ni un país por completo atrasado; ni un oasis de libertad interrumpido por desiertos de silencio para el ejercicio periodístico. No un conflicto en donde corruptos y autoritarios son los únicos culpables, sino variadas limitaciones enraizadas en nuestra historia, en nuestra cultura política, en la economía política y en las políticas de un empresariado acostumbrado a privilegios.
Pero esta no es una colección de historias sobre los periodismos que pretenda ser indiferente, objetiva y fría. Son más bien textos y notas que construyen la realidad desde la mirada de un periodista. En particular, un periodista activista.
Hay una veta biográfica en el relato que le brinda honestidad y originalidad.
Por un lado, se reitera de manera constante que el autor es un personaje dentro del relato con una agenda y una postura ante cada uno de los temas. El reconocimiento de los errores propios —los acobardamientos, los osos y gafes— humanizan y levantan una plataforma desde la cual son más convincentes los señalamientos directos de las transgresiones no solo de políticos impresentables, sino también de periodistas, opinadores y dueños de medios, rompiendo la máxima aquella de “perro no come perro”: transgresiones como no verificar los datos, mentir, ser propagandista del gobierno, chantajear, desprestigiar a víctimas...
La experiencia internacional como periodista de guerra brinda una perspectiva original (al menos en México).
Varias viñetas, situadas en países como Libia y Congo, se leen como literatura de viajes.
Se compara la experiencia mexicana con la situación de países con conflictos armados, pero el relato no se queda en constatar que en México hay una guerra, postura fácil que daría carpetazo al problema de cómo conceptuar la violencia en México.
Entonces, ¿qué aporta comparar a México con el norte de África? Comparar a periodistas del interior de México con periodistas de guerra en el norte de África enfatiza la imposibilidad de abandonar el conflicto y el heroísmo de quienes se atreven a contrariar a élites políticas y económicas sin frenos. El trabajo de educación sentimental humaniza a víctimas. Nos entera de las condiciones en que personas practican el periodismo, el significado que le dan y la pasión con que lo hacen.
Finalmente, esta colección de textos y notas requiere de ciertas explicaciones sobre el entorno en que se practican estos periodismos.
Sobresalen en esta vertiente las reflexiones sobre la naturaleza y el origen de la violencia de la delincuencia organizada en México que lo hallan en una combinación de procesos de corrupción de las élites, auge del neoliberalismo y una estrategia ideal para despojar a comunidades.
Finalmente, como he mencionado, el libro cubre en sus capítulos demasiados frentes: distintos periodismos, en distintos contextos históricos y geográficos, a veces desde la anécdota personal, en otras ocasiones desde la investigación periodística o desde los datos históricos. El problema de lo anterior es que muchas veces se pierde el hilo conductor y los capítulos pierden su unidad temática al estar saltando constantemente de tema en tema.
November 3, 2021
In most societies, the killing of a story is a routine call. Editors find a piece insufficiently engaging, persuasive, or timely. In Mexico, stories are often killed along with their authors: since around 2004, it has consistently ranked as the country outside a war zone with most reporters murdered. It’s not the infamous narcos who are chiefly to blame. More common are hit jobs ordered by provincial politicians. Impunity is standard, as gunmen are rarely jailed and masterminds never.
Killing the Story is a cri de coeur from a journalist who has lost colleagues to murderers. A veteran correspondent for leading magazine Proceso, Témoris Grecko applies his considerable narrative skills to the persecution of reporters on the home front. He also shows other ways in which the powerful have tried to kill stories: governments denying subsidies (often a necessary life-support mechanism) to media that call them to account; owners caving to political pressure and firing critical voices. But there are encouraging stories too: valiant journalists like talk-radio host Carmen Aristegui exposed the corruption and incompetence of President Peña Nieto and his cronies, helping cause the massive defeat of his party in the 2018 election.
Grecko ends at a crossroads, for President López Obrador has given mixed signals about freedom of the press. The author calls for an end to carrot-and-stick use of state advertising spend and for media owners to pay a decent wage. This is a compact, passionate, and artfully written book, fuelled by a controlled rage and seasoned with bitter ironies, each chapter packing a punch. It offers a window onto the inequalities and systematic injustices that pervade Mexico more broadly. And it works well as a personal tribute to Mexico’s murdered journalists – at least 120 since 2000 – and as a salute to those who resist co-option and hold elites and criminals to account.
Nonetheless, it sometimes comes up short. Two chapters deal with Rubén Espinosa, a Veracruz-based journalist killed (oddly) in Mexico City, and Grecko repeats the mantra that a former governor was to blame. But the ongoing tragedy of the Espinosa case and scores like it – unacknowledged here – is the unknowability of the mastermind, due to police incompetence, judicial partiality, and/or lack of political will. Second, Grecko declines to probe further any of the four murders he details, which given his background in investigative journalism is disappointing. Third, he likes to contrast noble journalists with sleazy or bullying politicians. Real life is less Manichaean. There’s no mention, for example, of reporters on the payroll of cartels, an uncomfortable truth explored by one of the fallen profiled here, Javier Valdez. Finally, a worthwhile but hasty chapter on Proceso is spoiled by multiple errors.
Killing the Story is a cri de coeur from a journalist who has lost colleagues to murderers. A veteran correspondent for leading magazine Proceso, Témoris Grecko applies his considerable narrative skills to the persecution of reporters on the home front. He also shows other ways in which the powerful have tried to kill stories: governments denying subsidies (often a necessary life-support mechanism) to media that call them to account; owners caving to political pressure and firing critical voices. But there are encouraging stories too: valiant journalists like talk-radio host Carmen Aristegui exposed the corruption and incompetence of President Peña Nieto and his cronies, helping cause the massive defeat of his party in the 2018 election.
Grecko ends at a crossroads, for President López Obrador has given mixed signals about freedom of the press. The author calls for an end to carrot-and-stick use of state advertising spend and for media owners to pay a decent wage. This is a compact, passionate, and artfully written book, fuelled by a controlled rage and seasoned with bitter ironies, each chapter packing a punch. It offers a window onto the inequalities and systematic injustices that pervade Mexico more broadly. And it works well as a personal tribute to Mexico’s murdered journalists – at least 120 since 2000 – and as a salute to those who resist co-option and hold elites and criminals to account.
Nonetheless, it sometimes comes up short. Two chapters deal with Rubén Espinosa, a Veracruz-based journalist killed (oddly) in Mexico City, and Grecko repeats the mantra that a former governor was to blame. But the ongoing tragedy of the Espinosa case and scores like it – unacknowledged here – is the unknowability of the mastermind, due to police incompetence, judicial partiality, and/or lack of political will. Second, Grecko declines to probe further any of the four murders he details, which given his background in investigative journalism is disappointing. Third, he likes to contrast noble journalists with sleazy or bullying politicians. Real life is less Manichaean. There’s no mention, for example, of reporters on the payroll of cartels, an uncomfortable truth explored by one of the fallen profiled here, Javier Valdez. Finally, a worthwhile but hasty chapter on Proceso is spoiled by multiple errors.
September 24, 2020
“The truth cannot be killed by killing journalists.” – Temoris Grecko, Killing the Story
This is a nonfiction account of the risks that Journalists take with their lives to report the truth in Mexico. Amazingly, in 2017, Mexico was the most dangerous country to live in for a journalist (it beat out Iraq and Syria).
The journalists are working to report the truth about crime and corruption in all levels of the Mexico government, drug cartels, Mexican police/army, etc. The author – a fellow journalist – details some of the journalists and their struggles (including some who have been killed) as well as some of the independent news organizations that continue to broadcast the truth despite threats of violence.
But it is not only journalists that are at risk. Lots of innocent bystanders seem to get caught up in the violence and intimidation, and there is no justice for the victim’s family. Nearly 90% of murders in Mexico do not result in a conviction!
It makes me think about our country and how fake news is often spread on social media, etc. It is important to have independent reporters who report on the actual truth (and fact check the lies/fake news/misinformation that is being spread).
This is an important read. It is brutal and disturbing at times, but I am also hopeful that people still believe in their freedom enough to continue to fight for it. At the end of the book, the author has a bunch of quotes from Mexican journalists as to why they continue to do this job despite everything. I very much admire them!
I won this copy in one of Goodreads giveaways, but my review is my own.
This is a nonfiction account of the risks that Journalists take with their lives to report the truth in Mexico. Amazingly, in 2017, Mexico was the most dangerous country to live in for a journalist (it beat out Iraq and Syria).
The journalists are working to report the truth about crime and corruption in all levels of the Mexico government, drug cartels, Mexican police/army, etc. The author – a fellow journalist – details some of the journalists and their struggles (including some who have been killed) as well as some of the independent news organizations that continue to broadcast the truth despite threats of violence.
But it is not only journalists that are at risk. Lots of innocent bystanders seem to get caught up in the violence and intimidation, and there is no justice for the victim’s family. Nearly 90% of murders in Mexico do not result in a conviction!
It makes me think about our country and how fake news is often spread on social media, etc. It is important to have independent reporters who report on the actual truth (and fact check the lies/fake news/misinformation that is being spread).
This is an important read. It is brutal and disturbing at times, but I am also hopeful that people still believe in their freedom enough to continue to fight for it. At the end of the book, the author has a bunch of quotes from Mexican journalists as to why they continue to do this job despite everything. I very much admire them!
I won this copy in one of Goodreads giveaways, but my review is my own.
December 12, 2023
Chilling. One of the most dangerous places on earth to be a journalist is not a war torn country but…Mexico. Journalists are routinely murdered with impunity. Boldly gunned down during the day walking down the street. Kidnapped, murdered and left dead on the side of roads, decapitated.
The author, Temoris Grecko, a journalist himself from Mexico, honors the lives of the many Mexican journalists who have been murdered after boldly exposing the corruption of crime organizations, corrupt Governors, corrupt police, Presidents and cartels.
Each chapter follows a journalist, now dead, and the story they were exposing. As painful as it is to read, it is equally inspiring for the bravery of the Mexican journalists who continue to fight for truth and uncovering corruption.
A must read.
The author, Temoris Grecko, a journalist himself from Mexico, honors the lives of the many Mexican journalists who have been murdered after boldly exposing the corruption of crime organizations, corrupt Governors, corrupt police, Presidents and cartels.
Each chapter follows a journalist, now dead, and the story they were exposing. As painful as it is to read, it is equally inspiring for the bravery of the Mexican journalists who continue to fight for truth and uncovering corruption.
A must read.
October 16, 2020
‘Killing the Story: Journalists Risking Their Lives to Uncover the Truth in Mexico’ by Témoris Grecko shows how dangerous it is to be a journalist in Mexico.
The first half of the book is well done. It shows the danger and the brutally these people face but then it grows repetitive in the last half naming so many places and connections that really don’t mean anything to the reader.
For example, on page 111 the previous administration in Mexico had invited Candidate Donald Trump to Mexico. The author calls this a big mistake but never explains why and I’m left to wonder why?
I do wish there had been some photo’s of the journalist who had been killed. This could have been added to the back cover to save on printing. Same as with a map of Mexico so I as the reader (who does not know Mexico so well) can see the towns that are talked about.
With the protests and petitions, there seems to be no helping the corruption. It would have been interesting to see how this could be fixed if at all. Sadly its never really talked about.
I would have given this book a higher review but then we get hit with the last chapter criticizing Donald Trump for being in the White House and Mar Largo instead of flying commercial like ALMO.
I don’t know if the author or the translator put this in but both of them should have known that no USA President flies economy…EVER. Its about security plan and simple.
The book also criticizes places like the USA, Russia, China, Brazil, Egypt, UAE and so on about how they treat journalist. The last time I looked this book was about Mexico not the rest of the world. If those writers want to complain let them but don’t overreach.
Also calling Donald Trump a lying bully does not help your case of real journalism. By doing that it makes you sound like the fake news/MSM.
In Mexico you have people being killed for speaking the truth. In the USA we have media who can speak the truth but who tell lies instead hence ‘the fake news’.
https://theworldisabookandiamitsreade...
The first half of the book is well done. It shows the danger and the brutally these people face but then it grows repetitive in the last half naming so many places and connections that really don’t mean anything to the reader.
For example, on page 111 the previous administration in Mexico had invited Candidate Donald Trump to Mexico. The author calls this a big mistake but never explains why and I’m left to wonder why?
I do wish there had been some photo’s of the journalist who had been killed. This could have been added to the back cover to save on printing. Same as with a map of Mexico so I as the reader (who does not know Mexico so well) can see the towns that are talked about.
With the protests and petitions, there seems to be no helping the corruption. It would have been interesting to see how this could be fixed if at all. Sadly its never really talked about.
I would have given this book a higher review but then we get hit with the last chapter criticizing Donald Trump for being in the White House and Mar Largo instead of flying commercial like ALMO.
I don’t know if the author or the translator put this in but both of them should have known that no USA President flies economy…EVER. Its about security plan and simple.
The book also criticizes places like the USA, Russia, China, Brazil, Egypt, UAE and so on about how they treat journalist. The last time I looked this book was about Mexico not the rest of the world. If those writers want to complain let them but don’t overreach.
Also calling Donald Trump a lying bully does not help your case of real journalism. By doing that it makes you sound like the fake news/MSM.
In Mexico you have people being killed for speaking the truth. In the USA we have media who can speak the truth but who tell lies instead hence ‘the fake news’.
https://theworldisabookandiamitsreade...
October 11, 2020
I got an ARC of this book from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
What I liked
This book was eye-opening to me. I've certainly heard about the violence in Mexico before, but never before had I read something that followed the stories of so many people and tied the events in so well with the political climate at the time. It read like a detailed history, only the events were in some cases things that happened just last year. It's very much a book about current events, even though it feels historical.
I liked the way the author took care to mention several organizations that had been helpful to journalists facing death threats and other issues in Mexico. The details included make it easy to go on and do further research if you are so inclined, or know from a journalist's perspective which organizations to support if you are moved to do so.
What I didn't like
As I mentioned, the book really did feel like a historical non-fiction for most of it rather than current events. While it's clear that the author had a personal relationship to many of the people talked about in the book, the emotion fails to come through in many places, and perhaps it was for this reason that I felt the writing was not very engaging. This was especially true in the first half of the book, though I did read the second half in a single sitting.
Overall
I'd recommend this book to anyone who seeks to understand how and why journalists fight for the right to do their jobs, or anyone who is interested in Mexico and that nation's current events. However, I would have to skip a more general recommendation this time around because I feel the engagement factor is just not there.
What I liked
This book was eye-opening to me. I've certainly heard about the violence in Mexico before, but never before had I read something that followed the stories of so many people and tied the events in so well with the political climate at the time. It read like a detailed history, only the events were in some cases things that happened just last year. It's very much a book about current events, even though it feels historical.
I liked the way the author took care to mention several organizations that had been helpful to journalists facing death threats and other issues in Mexico. The details included make it easy to go on and do further research if you are so inclined, or know from a journalist's perspective which organizations to support if you are moved to do so.
What I didn't like
As I mentioned, the book really did feel like a historical non-fiction for most of it rather than current events. While it's clear that the author had a personal relationship to many of the people talked about in the book, the emotion fails to come through in many places, and perhaps it was for this reason that I felt the writing was not very engaging. This was especially true in the first half of the book, though I did read the second half in a single sitting.
Overall
I'd recommend this book to anyone who seeks to understand how and why journalists fight for the right to do their jobs, or anyone who is interested in Mexico and that nation's current events. However, I would have to skip a more general recommendation this time around because I feel the engagement factor is just not there.
September 7, 2020
Thank you to Goodreads, the publisher, and the author; I received a copy of this book for free in exchange for an honest review.
“Killing the Story” is a biting collection of vignettes that comes together to form a blistering rebuke on the suppression of freedom of speech and its deadly consequences.
The chapters are (with the exception of the first two) centered on a separate journalist/topic, though the stories weave into one another and overlap. Most are tragic, though some bright moments are sprinkled in. This is a heavy topic, and Grecko does an excellent job doing justice for it.
For those who are interested in reading books on the persecution of journalists but are not especially familiar with the Mexican political landscape, this book does a good job of placing events and players in context. I did not feel lost despite only have a basic level of knowledge gleaned from old college courses/reading current news.
In terms of narrative, the pacing for me slowed down at Chapter 5, though it quickly picked up again. I feel that the chapters focused on a specific individual were stronger, though I understand why the topic-focused chapters were needed for providing additional information and context.
Overall, this book is an inspiring memorial to those lost and a powerful call for action going forward.
“Killing the Story” is a biting collection of vignettes that comes together to form a blistering rebuke on the suppression of freedom of speech and its deadly consequences.
The chapters are (with the exception of the first two) centered on a separate journalist/topic, though the stories weave into one another and overlap. Most are tragic, though some bright moments are sprinkled in. This is a heavy topic, and Grecko does an excellent job doing justice for it.
For those who are interested in reading books on the persecution of journalists but are not especially familiar with the Mexican political landscape, this book does a good job of placing events and players in context. I did not feel lost despite only have a basic level of knowledge gleaned from old college courses/reading current news.
In terms of narrative, the pacing for me slowed down at Chapter 5, though it quickly picked up again. I feel that the chapters focused on a specific individual were stronger, though I understand why the topic-focused chapters were needed for providing additional information and context.
Overall, this book is an inspiring memorial to those lost and a powerful call for action going forward.
December 30, 2020
"Killing the Story" is an eye opening piece of narrative nonfiction that deserves our full attention. Writing and investigating this piece was a risk to the own author's life and those of his family and subjects. While we see evidence of corruption in our own political and media communities here in the U.S., the corruption in Mexico is truly out of control! The true accounts of violence against journalists (and citizens) told here are terrifying and heartbreaking. I happen to read "Killing the Story" directly after reading Jeanine Cummins' "American Dirt" which served as a nice complement to that story also involving violence against Cental American journalists and their families. Thank you NetGalley for providing me with the ARC of Grecko's bold piece of journalism.
March 26, 2021
Thank you to Goodreads and The New Press Publishing for my copy of "Killing the Story." Most importantly, thank you to Temoris Grecko for having the courage to write this book and for getting out the stories that his fellow journalists were not able to. The corruption, violence, and coverups towards journalists in Mexico is staggering and appalling. A must read for anyone who values freedom of speech/the press-very eye opening!
October 6, 2020
An important and compelling topic, but the book suffered from a lack of narrative structure. Also could’ve used more historical background to help the reader understand how and why things had gotten so bad.
May 19, 2022
Really interesting and well written. The stories got a little repetitive, which is terrible because they all talk about the immense and very real corruption of the mexican government. I learned a lot and also got very depressed about the political state of the country i’m from.
Read
March 10, 2021Journalists. Corruption. Murder. Life sketches. Courage.
June 21, 2021
8/10 - incredible insight into journalism in Mexico and the dangers that journalists face doing their job
August 14, 2020
Thank you Netgalley and The New Press for providing the ARC of Killing the Story. This is an anger-inducing recounting of journalist deaths in Mexico and will highly frustrate and sadden anyone who believes in the power of a free press. It’s not altogether unhopeful although it’s difficult to predict if things will ever change in Mexico or other areas of the world where reporters are suppressed, kidnapped, tortured, killed. I recommend this title.
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