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Transcript/Script((PLAYBOOK SLUG: PF ECUADOR JOURNALIST THREAT
HEADLINE: Traumatized by studio raid, Ecuadorian journalist seeks asylum
TEASER: A gang raid on TV journalists during a live broadcast earlier this year is part of a wider wave of violence, say analysts
PUBLISHED AT: 06/21/2024, 2:25 p
BYLINE: Cristina Caicedo Smit
CONTRIBUTOR:
DATELINE: Washington DC, Miami
VIDEOGRAPHER: José Pernalete, Cristina Caicedo Smit
VIDEO EDITOR: Cristina Caicedo Smit
SCRIPT EDITORS: JJ, Page
VIDEO SOURCE (S): VOA, AP, AFP
PLATFORMS (mark with X): WEB __ TV X__ RADIO __
TRT: 2:51
VID APPROVED BY: Reifenrath
TYPE:
EDITOR NOTES: For VOA Press Freedom. Questions/Review Jessica Jerreat, Cristina Caicedo Smit))
((INTRO)) [[After being held up at gunpoint live on air as violence swept Ecuador, journalist José Luis Calderón needed to find trauma support and safety. Now the journalist is seeking asylum in Miami. For VOA News, Cristina Caicedo Smit has the story.]]
[[Make sure logo with TC is not obscured]]
((NARRATION))
With a gun to his neck, José Luis Calderón pleads with authorities not to enter the TC Television studios. Footage of the live raid at the Ecuadorian public broadcaster earlier this year traveled around the world.
((José Luis Calderón, Journalist)) ((Male in Spanish))
“I had guns pointed at me at all times. They even put a carbine, the muzzle of a carbine, on my neck. An explosive, also, some type of dynamite explosive in my jacket pocket.”
[[Make sure logo with TC is not obscured]]
((NARRATION)) The raid by alleged gang members during a live broadcast in Guayaquil city is a first for Ecuadorian media. And Calderón vividly remembers the moments that changed his life — and those of his team.
((José Luis Calderón, Journalist)) ((Male in Spanish))
“My colleagues were emotionally devastated. Fathers and mothers who believed they were not going to return home to hug their children.”
(((NARRATION))
Even after police made arrests, Calderón remained uneasy.
((NARRATION))
In Washington, Dagmar Thiel and her nonprofit Fundamedios monitor violations like the TC Television case.
In Ecuador, she says, media confront deteriorating rights and high risks, with threats from armed groups leading to silent zones, or areas where reporters can no longer work.
((Dagmar Thiel, Fundamedios )) ((Female in English))
“It's a very dangerous work nowadays. Ecuador was a place where you could freely report. But being now a journalist, it's not easy anymore. In the last year and a half, we have reported 14 journalists that have decided to go into exile.”
((NARRATION))
Among them is Calderón. Unable to get the support he needed to cope with his trauma, the journalist traveled to the U.S. to seek asylum.
((José Luis Calderón, Journalist)) ((Male in Spanish))
“I entered periods of anxiety, and I said, ‘No, this can't be.’ And the truth is that I have to get out of here.”
((NARRATION))
Now Calderón is trying to adjust to his new life, away from his country, friends and family.
[[OPT CUT FOR HOUSE]]
((José Luis Calderón, Journalist)) ((Male in Spanish))
“I am optimistic that things will go in my favor. Maybe someone [will] value my expertise in communication and journalism… And yes, I’m a little scared, worried because we are starting from scratch.”
[[OPT CUT ENDS]]
((NARRATION))
Calderón is safe, but Thiel says that back in Ecuador, threats to the media have an impact on society.
((Dagmar Thiel, Fundamedios )) ((Female in English))
“So, what we are having is a lack of information and, yes, like in many other countries, the citizens will not have information to know what's happening in their country.”
((NARRATION))
Ecuadorian President Daniel Noboa visited Calderón’s newsroom after the raid, and Ecuador renewed commitments to press freedom, including setting up a protection mechanism. However, budget cuts mean such safeguards are not funded in the coming years.
((Cristina Caicedo Smit, VOA News.))
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