The Mexico’s President, Andrés Manuel López Obrador, has come under fire for disclosing personal details of The New York Times journalist Natalie Kitroeff.
Kitroeff is one of the reporters involved in a piece examining an investigation by U.S. government authorities into alleged drug cartel financing of his 2018 presidential campaign.
During his daily morning press conference, López Obrador revealed that the NYT had submitted a questionnaire to presidential spokesperson Jesús Ramírez Cuevas, seeking the government’s position.
The president claimed the Times “issued an ultimatum” to Ramírez Cuevas for a response, which prompted him to address the questions publicly during his briefing.
“The correspondent for The New York Times sends a questionnaire to Jesús in a tone you will see as threatening and arrogant, informing us that they are conducting an investigation with information from the DEA where people linked to me received money, not just in 2006, but in 2018, and that they gave money to my sons,” said the Mexican leader.
In revealing the questionnaire, López Obrador disclosed Kitroeff’s personal phone number and criticized her work for The New York Times.
The New York Times Responds to López Obrador’s Attacks
Through its account, the NYT responded to the Mexican president’s attacks against its reporter with the following message: “This is a troubling and unacceptable tactic from a world leader at a time when threats against journalists are on the rise. We have since published the findings from this investigation and stand by our reporting and the journalists who pursue the facts where they lead.”
In response to President Andrés Manuel López Obrador of Mexico’s press conference this morning: pic.twitter.com/C0NI8aMb4F
— NYTimes Communications (@NYTimesPR) February 22, 2024
Mexico has become one of the most dangerous countries in the world for journalists. In 2024 alone, six journalists have been murdered in Mexico.
Through his press conferences, the Mexican president has a history of harassing and intimidating journalists critical of his administration.
The NYT revelation about Mexico’s president
The NYT’s journalistic work, conducted by Alan Feuer and Natalie Kitroeff, is based on a new investigation carried out by the United States government into alleged drug trafficking financing in his 2018 presidential campaign.
A few weeks ago, ProPublica and other media outlets published information about a DEA inquiry into alleged organized crime money donations, particularly from the Sinaloa Cartel, to Andrés Manuel López Obrador’s (AMLO) 2006 presidential campaign. Thus, the NYT’s publication concerns a new case.
According to a New York Times report, U.S. law enforcement officials conducted a years-long secret investigation into allegations that close allies of the Mexican president held meetings and received millions of dollars from drug cartels after his election. This investigation sought to clarify possible links between cartel operators and advisers or officials close to López Obrador.
INAI to Investigate Personal Data Violation
The National Institute for Transparency, Access to Information, and Protection of Personal Data (INAI) has announced the initiation of an ex-officio investigation following the disclosure of a journalist’s phone number from The New York Times during Andrés Manuel López Obrador’s morning briefing.
You can read the NYT’s investigation here.
