Risking Death to Report the Truth

[Judi Lynn]

Risking Death to Report the Truth
By Kanya D'Almeida

NEW YORK, Oct 19, 2010 (IPS) - Alma Guillermoprieto was one of only two journalists to investigate rumours of the notorious massacre in El Mozote, El Salvador in December 1981. Because the slaughter of 1,000 unarmed civilians was perpetrated by the U.S.-backed Salvadorian Army, the Ronald Reagan administration attempted to discredit her work.

But Guillermoprieto refused to back down, and finally the U.S. government was forced to confirm her story.

On Tuesday, Guillermoprieto – along with three other extraordinary women – was honoured for her work at the 2010 Courage in Journalism Awards at the Waldorf Astoria hotel in New York.

Organised by the International Women's Media Foundation (IWMF), the awards pay homage to intrepid women across the world who continue to penetrate press barriers in order to report from the frontlines of their countries and communities.

More:
http://ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=53220

[flamingdem]

1. That's great to hear nt

[CBHagman]

2. Thank you for keeping this story before the public's eyes.

I suspect there are a great many on DU who haven't heard of El Mozote and have no idea what happened in Central America during the '80s.

I hadn't heard about this particular award, and I thank you for taking the time to pass that story on as well.

There's a lot online about El Mozote, and there are books and news reports as well. Here's a link to an NPR story:

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=8972597

[MinM]

3. Scott Simon is a real mixed-bag...

From, on the one hand iirc, doing good reporting on the death squads in Central America. To otoh giving his full support to George W. Bush policies, i.e., the Iraq War.

Given his support of Bush, and that interview with Ray Bonner, it makes me think that I might be misrembering (sic) Simon's earlier reporting. Before Bonner's admonition about 2:30 in, Scott Simon tried to revise history.