Argentinian Journalism Under Pressure from President Milei’s Attacks and Government Repression

January 16, 2026 – Argentina – 

Journalists and press freedom advocates in Argentina are sounding the alarm about a sharp deterioration in conditions for independent media under President Javier Milei’s administration, as documented by the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) in a January 16, 2026, analysis. The report highlights a significant rise in public attacks, legal harassment, and physical aggression connected to government rhetoric and actions that critics say have fostered a hostile environment for journalists.

One of the most serious incidents noted in the CPJ report occurred on March 12, 2025, in Buenos Aires, when independent photographer Pablo Grillo was struck in the head by a tear gas canister fired by police while he was covering a protest of pensioners. Grillo sustained a severe brain injury and remains in recovery months after the event, which press unions describe as unprecedented in Argentina’s recent history and emblematic of a broader pattern of intimidation.

Local press freedom monitor Foro de Periodismo Argentino (FOPEA) recorded a total of 278 documented incidents against journalists in 2025, representing a 55 percent increase from the previous year and a 139 percent rise since 2023. FOPEA analysis indicates that Milei’s own public discourse — including repeated derogatory references to journalists as “criminals,” “corrupt,” “apes” and “terrorists” — was connected to roughly 43 percent of cases involving offensive or stigmatizing rhetoric.

Beyond verbal attacks, journalists have faced growing legal harassment, with the number of civil and criminal actions against media professionals roughly tripling from 2024 to 2025. Cases include lawsuits involving independent broadcaster Futuröck’s founder and civil claims targeting veteran journalists covering issues related to media freedom.

Female journalists have also been disproportionately affected by hostile online campaigns and sexist abuse tied to political tensions, with about 22 percent of attacks documented last year targeting women in the profession. Some journalists have even gone into exile, citing concerns about personal safety and the hostile working environment.

Press freedom organisations and unions — including the Buenos Aires Press Union, the Argentina Press Workers Federation, and international partners — have formally presented reports on escalating repression to the Argentinian Senate and to regional human rights bodies. They are calling on authorities to halt practices that undermine journalists’ ability to work safely and independently and to ensure justice in high-profile cases such as Grillo’s.

The CPJ has urged the Argentine government to cease attacks on the press and to uphold constitutional protections for freedom of expression, warning that continued government-linked pressure threatens the foundation of democratic discourse in the country.

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Argentinian journalism stifled by President Milei’s public attacks, government repression