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Presenting insights from the new ebook Worlds of Journalism: Safety, Professional Autonomy, and Resilience among Journalists in Latin America, researchers painted a complex, and often troubling, picture of Latin American journalism during two webinars hosted by the Knight Center for Journalism in the Americas, Jan. 22, 2026 (held in Spanish), and Feb. 3, 2026 (held in English).

Nearly 350 people registered to attend the Spanish-language webinar, now available to watch online, which featured scholars Adriana Amado, Universidad Camilo José Cela in Argentina; Armando Gutierrez Ortega, Universidad Autónoma de Baja California, Mexico; Martín Oller Alonso, University of Salamanca in Spain; Celeste Gonzalez de Bustamante, University of Texas at Austin; Jesús Arroyave, Universidad del Norte en Barranquilla, Colombia; and William Porath, Pontificia Universidad Católica of Chile.

The English-language webinar, which attracted 515 registrants, is also available to watch online, and featured scholars Carlos Arcila Calderón, Universidad de Salamanca; Lourdes Cueva Chacón, San Diego State University; Summer Harlow, University of Texas at Austin; Janara Nicoletti, University of Siegen; and Mireya Márquez Ramírez, Universidad Iberoamericana in Mexico City.

Moderated by Summer Harlow, Knight Center Associate Director, and Celeste Gonzalez de Bustamante, founding director of the Center for Global Change in Media, the sessions offered an in‑depth look at how journalists navigate labor precarity and physical and mental insecurity while still defending their commitment to truth and the public interest.

Though each researcher presented a unique national context, several themes resonated across borders:

• Precarity is widespread; journalists routinely work several jobs to survive.
• Autonomy exists, but under pressure and often limited by fear, lack of access to information, and political or criminal threats.
• Hate speech and attacks are rising, even in countries once considered safe.
• Journalists working outside capital cities are the most vulnerable, facing isolation and state or criminal control.
• Digital, alternative, and independent outlets are growing, often serving as spaces of greater freedom, but with little pay.
• Despite everything, journalists demonstrate resilience and a strong commitment to democratic roles.

Read more about the ebook and its findings, based on the Worlds of Journalism Study project, here. Available in English, Spanish, and Portuguese, the free ebook has been downloaded nearly 1,700 times since it launched Jan. 14, 2026.