Mexico City, April 3, 2025—Mexican authorities should immediately take steps to protect 17 reporters named by a Facebook page allegedly run by a criminal gang in the state of Chiapas and hold those responsible to account, the Committee to Protect Journalists said Thursday.
On Friday, March 28, the Facebook page “Noticias Chiapas al ROJO” published the names of 17 journalists active in Tapachula, near the border with Guatemala, and accused them, without evidence, of working for the alleged leader of a local gang.
“It is deeply concerning that alleged criminals use social media to smear journalists, placing their lives at risk,” said Jan-Albert Hootsen, CPJ’s Mexico Representative. “Mexican authorities must provide protection to reporters implicated by this Facebook page and find those responsible and bring them to justice.”
Two Tapachula journalists who spoke to CPJ by phone on condition of anonymity, fearing reprisal, believe Noticias Chiapas al ROJO was created by a criminal gang to spread disinformation against rivals, authorities and journalists.
Social media profiles posing as legitimate news outlets to spread disinformation is common practice in Mexico, according to numerous journalists and government officials CPJ has spoken with over the past several years.
This places journalists at an immediate risk of being targeted by gangs; in 2022, Tijuana photographer Margarito Martínez was killed after being targeted by similar social media pages.
CPJ attempted to contact Facebook via email for comment but did not receive a reply. The offices of the Chiapas state prosecutor and Chiapas governor Eduardo Ramírez did not respond to calls by CPJ for comment.
An official with the Federal Mechanism for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders and Journalists, which coordinates protection of reporters at risk, told CPJ on Friday, March 28, that his agency was in the process of evaluating the risk facing reporters named by the Facebook page. He asked not to be identified by name, as he is not authorized to speak publicly on the issue.