Sheinbaum Downplays Journalist List, Denies Causing Harm

President Claudia Sheinbaum Pardo has minimized the significance of a list of journalists and opposition figures disseminated by the Presidency's legal counsel, Luisa María Alcalde Luján. Sheinbaum asserted that the list did not cause harm to the individuals named.

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There was no list; names were presented. Luisa demonstrated the use of digital platforms, social media, to amplify, even generate fake news, from a piece of news. That is what she presented.

During her morning press conference at the National Palace, Sheinbaum explained that the presentation was not a "list of bad journalists" or "those who criticize the government." Instead, she stated, it aimed to illustrate the use of digital platforms and social media to amplify news, including fake news, often in campaigns against the Mexican government. Alcalde Luján, she noted, presented examples of how certain journalists' work is used to amplify narratives.

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She gave examples. She never stated 'this is the list of bad journalists or this is the list of those who criticize the government.' She never said that. She said 'many of these journalists are used to amplify news as a campaign against the government of Mexico.' That is what she said.

Sheinbaum firmly rejected accusations of censorship, questioning, "Tell me, which journalist have we censored? There is none. Tell me, which media outlet have we censored? There is none." She also denied that the Presidency has ever contacted media conductors to demand the removal of someone based on personal dislike.

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Tell me, which journalist have we censored? There is none; tell me, which media outlet have we censored? There is none; tell me any host that the Presidency of the Republic has spoken to to say 'remove this host because I don't like him,' it hasn't happened.

Regarding potential harm to the journalists mentioned, Sheinbaum asked, "What damage? Has any of the journalists on that list suffered any damage because of it?" She added that she, too, faces numerous attacks on social media, as do supporters of the government's policies, framing it as an inherent problem of social media platforms. She reiterated that the presentation was about the "scheme of paid dissemination that exists and is real on social media," not about labeling individuals as "bad journalists."

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What damage? Has any of the journalists on that list suffered any damage because of it? I also receive many attacks on social media, as do colleagues who are in favor of many policies that the government makes, they receive a quantity of attacks on social media, it is part of the problem of social media.