A fearless magazine is silenced

In a country like Colombia, investigative journalism is practised only by the most courageous reporters.

One of the most daring publications was the weekly magazine Cambio. It broke numerous stories that challenged government, including an expose of illegal wiretapping by the country’s intelligence agency of opposition politicians, activists and even Supreme Court judges. It also exposed how the army passed off young civilian casualties in the counter-insurgency war as guerrillas.

But Cambio was acquired by a new ownership group with close ties to the government, and not surprisingly, investigative journalism is no longer a priority. Cambio‘s top two editors have been dismissed, and the magazine will be converted into a general interest monthly.