“The recognition of a journalist—or journalists—carries a double merit that we must honor through our clear, insightful, and truthful writing every day,” said Francisco Alejandro Leyva Aguilar in November 2024, upon receiving the Ricardo Flores Magón Mexico Journalism Award in the Digital Column category.
“I am,” he explained at the ceremony for the award, presented jointly by the Federation of Mexican Journalists’ Associations (Fapermex) and the National College of Journalism Graduates (Conalipe)—a journalist forged on the streets, learning day by day from what happens around me. This craft initially motivated me to earn my degree through Agreement 286 of the Ministry of Public Education (SEP) for the Recognition of Acquired Knowledge, which allowed me to take my professional exam at the prestigious Carlos Septién García School of Journalism.”
“I didn’t stop there; I also earned a master’s degree in political communication and marketing from the University of Alcalá de Henares, which has, at the very least, broadened my writing skills in this context,” he noted in his speech at the ceremony held at the National Academy of History and Geography.
Alejandro was convinced “that the daily challenge of facing a blank page should not be limited to just a news article, but should lead to the creation of more comprehensive, better-researched, and more imaginative texts—that is, books.”
He concluded his speech with a warning: “I reaffirm my commitment not to let my guard down during these times when journalism in Mexico is a high-risk profession in which even one’s very life is at stake.”
His words proved prophetic. Almost a year and eight months after he spoke them, while he was eating memelas for breakfast at a stand in the La Esmeralda neighborhood of San Pablo Etla, two hitmen on a motorcycle shot him three times in the head and back, literally blowing his brains out.
Shortly before his murder, after making strong accusations against the governor of Oaxaca, Salomón Jara; the Secretary of the Interior, Jesús Romero; and the government’s legal advisor, Geovany Vásquez Sagrero, the journalist held them responsible for whatever might happen to him. For months, he had unsuccessfully requested protective measures. That should be the main line of investigation into his murder.
Francisco Alejandro Leyva Aguilar was born on March 3, 1960, in the city of Oaxaca. A journalism graduate with license number 8116753, he was the director of the Oaxacan Radio and Television Corporation (Cortv). He wrote the local Facebook column *El Zumbido del Moscardón*. He named it in honor of a quote by Gabriel García Márquez, in which he warns: “Ethics is not an occasional condition; rather, it must always accompany journalism, just as the buzzing accompanies the horsefly.”
Alejandro was respected by his colleagues.
They addressed him as “Maestro.” He lived in a modest home and usually got around on a motorcycle. He was a man of principle. He was not afraid to expose acts of corruption or officials’ ties to organized crime.
His sources of information within the public administration and Oaxacan society were extensive and reliable. His connections with the PRI political establishment and the Morena party provided him with detailed insight into highly sensitive situations. He had a very good relationship with doctors at public hospitals, who confided in him about the state of their institutions because they knew he wasn’t profiting from it.
His columns repeatedly highlighted the nepotism and corruption of Salomón Jara’s administration, as well as the dangerous ties and business dealings of Noé Jara—the governor’s brother—with the Alliance of Unions and Associations of the State of Oaxaca (ASAEO) and its de facto leader, Iván Ríos, “El Cuqui.”
The ASAEO is a social organization that brings together transporters, merchants, and service providers. It was formed with sectors of the CTM and a splinter group from Pedro Haces’s CATEM. They transport construction materials and mining products.
They act as a shock troop against popular protests. They participated in the recent UABJO rector elections, supporting the governor’s candidate.
They control the Oaxaca Central Market and engage in other shady activities.
Last Wednesday, four members of ASAEO were arrested on suspicion of murdering Leyva. Usually, the organization responds to the arrest of its members by blocking the city of Oaxaca with trailers, trucks, and taxis. On this occasion, it did not.
After Leyva’s murder, two other journalists received death threats. Pedro Matías, a correspondent for Proceso magazine in Oaxaca, received messages warning him that he would be next. And the YouTuber Señor Blue, who works at the municipal government office of a town in the Cañadas region, was warned: “What’s up, you damn dog? We’re going to find you and turn you into mincemeat. “I know what I’m telling you, you damn dog—you think you’re so tough, but it’s going to get you.”
At the same time, the governor’s warning has circulated widely—he plans to create a list of websites and media outlets he considers enemies and full of hate, in addition to announcing that he will refuse to publicly answer questions from the press.
The situation in Oaxaca is very complicated. It was already complicated to begin with, but now it’s even worse. The recall referendum in January of this year showed that the Oaxacan spring withered away without ever blooming. Today, as the demand for justice grows, it’s clear that it has rotted away.
Journalist Ivonne Mateo told Salomón Jara to his face: “A large part of the press corps, a large part of society knows this, and we are convinced that Alejandro’s murder stems from here—from the Oaxacan government, from this establishment. You can give as many press conferences, interviews, and messages as you like, but many of us see it clearly: the message was very direct, and it was received.”
Original text by Luis Hernández Navarro published in La Jornada on July 28th, 2026.
Translation by Schools for Chiapas.