By Julyssa Lopez
Mexican American news anchor Jorge Ramos has never backed away from a challenge.
He quit his very first job at a Mexican radio station because a story he had produced on the government was deemed too critical. He was only 24, but even then, he refused to be censored. He moved to the United States a few years later and built a reputation as an intrepid reporter who isn’t afraid to ask tough questions. He pushed President Obama on immigration, ambushed Fidel Castro outside a hotel and, most recently, challenged Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump at a press conference.
The host of Univision’s political news program “Al Punto” and anchor of “Noticerio Univision” has been frequently called the Walter Cronkite of the Spanish-speaking world. On Tuesday, he joined the School of Media and Public Affairs Director Frank Sesno to discuss his tenacity as a reporter, the growing Latino population and his showdown with Mr. Trump.
Jorge Ramos and Frank Sesno at Jack Morton Auditorium.
Mr. Sesno started the event with a clip from the press conference that shows Mr. Ramos telling Mr. Trump that his immigration proposal was full of empty promises and unfeasible policies.
“He didn’t like that. He clearly didn’t like that. He called on another reporter,” Mr. Ramos remembered.
Mr. Trump’s security guards escorted Mr. Ramos out of the room after Mr. Trump told him to “go back to Univision.” The press conference was the most recent kerfuffle between Mr. Ramos and the controversial presidential candidate. After Mr. Trump made disparaging remarks about Mexico during his campaign announcement, Mr. Ramos wrote him a handwritten interview request and included his mobile phone number. Mr. Trump then uploaded a picture of the note to Instagram, disclosing Mr. Ramos’ number to thousands of people.
So, when Mr. Ramos found out Mr. Trump would be holding a press conference in Dubuque, Iowa, he and a producer made the choice to publicly challenge Mr. Trump’s views on Mexico and immigration. The move drew skepticism by critics who accused Mr. Ramos of pushing his own agenda on immigration reform.
“I think I understand why some people think we were doing activism and not journalism, but I would argue that the best examples of journalism that we have are when as a journalist, you challenge those in power,” Mr. Ramos said.
He added that it is critical for journalists to take a stand when it comes to issues of racism, discrimination, human rights, public lies, dictatorships and corruption. He cited the examples of Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein and, most recently, Mexican investigative reporter Carmen Aristegui.
Mr. Ramos also shared his thoughts on the power of the Latino population as observers watch Marco Rubio and Ted Cruz jockey for votes. He said that while Latinos may side with Republicans on issues like abortion, it’s not likely they will vote for a candidate who threatens to deport their friends and family. It is critical for Republicans to address immigration, he said, since Latinos now hold major political clout and total about 54 million people.
“We are changing everything from the way we dance and listen to music. I’ve said before that now we have more tortillas than bagels, more salsa than ketchup,” Mr. Ramos joked. “There is a new rule that you cannot make it without the Latino vote. “Don’t shut up, don’t sit down and don’t get out. Just speak up.”
José Andrés briefly joins the stage with Jorge Ramos.
The packed audience included many Spanish speakers who had grown up watching Mr. Ramos anchor the news desk at Univision. There was one familiar face in the crowd: 2014 graduation speaker José Andrés, who joined Mr. Ramos and Mr. Sesno onstage briefly to discuss his own experience as an immigrant in the United States.
During the question-and-answer portion of the event, attendees formed a line that curled around the auditorium to ask Mr. Ramos queries of their own. Several people thanked Mr. Ramos for representing the Latino community, and others expressed their solidarity with Mexicans. One person asked whether the clearly popular Mr. Ramos had ever considered running for Congress.
“At some point in my life many years ago, I thought politics was going to be a part of my life… but nowadays, I think that as a journalist sometimes I have a stronger voice and better questions than a politician, so I’ll stick to what I know,” he said with a laugh.
Jorge Ramos makes time for the audience after his interview.