Mexico Criticized Over Autocratic‑Sounding Media Regulation Proposal

Leopoldo Maldonado, regional director of Article 19 and UN special rapporteur on freedom of opinion and expression, warned that Mexico's new "general guidelines" to regulate news and opinions under the banner of "Audience Rights" place the country alongside autocratic regimes such as Venezuela, Nicaragua, Cuba, Sudan, Malaysia and Thailand. The draft, presented by President Claudia Sheinbaum, would allow authorities to curtail broadcasters and journalists by invoking anti‑terrorism, disinformation and child‑protection motives, effectively creating a "tribunal of truth" that could censor dissenting views.

Maldonado argues the proposal continues a pattern initiated under former President Andrés Manuel López Obrador, citing earlier measures like "Who is Who in Lies," "Infodemia" and the "Right of Reply" as failed fact‑checking attempts that morphed into tools for media pressure. Critics fear the regulation could undermine press freedom and pluralism in Mexico.