By Matthew Casey
Last week, I was very critical of the Chicago Tribune’s failure to mention Mexico’s warring drug cartels in an article covering the end of Operation Jump Start and the re-deployment of the National Guard from the border with Mexico.
Real news about the exploits of Mexico’s drug cartels can be hard to come by. For many reporters, the risks associated with “shining a light” on this issue are simply too great. This being said, I recommend that all Think Immigration readers log onto Border Reporter, a news blog maintained by freelance reporter, Michel Marizco.
Rogue journalists are often the target of criminal organizations, and the cartels are known to not show prejudice in who they kill for meddling in their affairs. Yet through an intricate knowledge of the border, as well as the use of anonymous inside sources, Marizco stares his own mortality in the face while offering a grass-roots view of the situation that has pushed Mexico to the brink of chaos. In this humble blogger’s opinion, Marizco is an extremely talented journalist with “cajones” the size of grapefruits. If you get a chance, drop him a line and thank him for his hard work.
There is also a permanent link to Border Reporter on our “BLOGS ABOUT IMMIGRATION, THE INTERNATIONAL BORDER AND MEXICO” page.