Feliz Aniversario La Jornada Maya

Eduardo del Buey
Foto: Fabrizio León
La Jornada Maya

Jueves 06 de julio, 2017


As we celebrate [i]La Jornada Maya’s[/i] second anniversary, I am pleased to share with readers the reason why I enjoy writing for this newspaper.

[i]La Jornada Maya[/i] is an open news outlet, in which journalists and columnists from all sectors of society and all ideological persuasions share a space to communicate with Yucatan readers.

This pluralistic platform differs from most news media in the sense that reporting and opining are separated. Reporters provide factual information to allow readers to come to their own conclusions, while columnists share their views and opinions with readers to offer alternative thinking about developments in Yucatan, Mexico, and the world.

[i]La Jornada Maya[/i] celebrates the role of the columnist, allowing each to discuss his or her opinions.

Unlike many newspapers, it is not locked into one ideological mindset. Rather, it allows its columnists to present a wide array of views on its pages from which readers can and do draw their own conclusions. It treats its readers with the respect intelligent people deserve rather than as blind followers of any given ideology. It gives them choices and options – a keystone of any democratic society.

Some reflect the thinking of the right; others represent the ideologies of the left. Some deal with politics; others with economics. Some with culture, and others with sports. Yet others write in the Mayan language, giving voice to the 800,000 people who speak that language today, and who celebrate a culture that is not only alive, but vibrant, with its own literature and music – classical and modern.

I am a centrist.

At no time have my ideas or writing been questioned, nor have I been asked to conform to a certain viewpoint or ideology. On the contrary – when Fabrizio Diez Leon invited me to write for this publication, he insisted that I discuss my own ideas with full freedom and write about whatever topic I desired. To date, not a syllable of my texts has been modified in any way, nor has a topic for conversation I have selected been questioned in any way. I have been free to share my ideas and viewpoints with readers, reflecting on many situations that affect our lives and our globe.

That is the role of a serious newspaper. To be open to all points of view from whatever point on the political spectrum.

Together we discuss news of the day from different perspectives, allowing all readers to find their own space in our pages. This ensures that our readership is as broad as Yucatan society, and that the newspaper provides a space for dialogue rather than monologue. Columnists discuss ideas from many viewpoints, and engage readers whose backgrounds and interests vary. We can agree or disagree respectfully, and allow each reader to have their own opinion.

That is the essence of professional journalism.

That is why I enjoy sharing my views with readers of [i]La Jornada Maya[/i].

I hope to write for [i]La Jornada Maya[/i] for many years to come, and engage in an ongoing conversation with readers that will help us all become better citizens of Yucatan, Mexico, and the world.

To my colleagues and readers, happy second anniversary, and I wish us all many more!

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