SIP President: "Either we reinvent journalism or we will be victims of change"

Miami.— The president of the Inter American Press Association (IAPA), José Roberto Dutriz, inaugurated this Wednesday in Miami the SIPConnect 2025 conference with a message that resonated in every corner of the auditorium: “If we are not protagonists of change, we will be its victims”. The warning was not metaphorical. Dutriz, also general director of the newspaper La Prensa Gráfica of El Salvador, outlined a panorama where digital transformation, artificial intelligence, political polarization, and new information consumption habits have radically changed the rules of the game for journalism. "The environment in which we work is being redesigned at an unprecedented speed," he stated.

Free journalism is non-negotiable

The president of the SIP emphasized that, amidst this technological and political storm, free, independent, and quality journalism is not only still relevant, but also indispensable for the sustenance of democracies in the Americas. "It's no longer enough to do good journalism," Dutriz warned. "We have to find sustainable ways to fund it, scale it, and distribute it. Because if the model doesn't hold, the content doesn't survive."

Regional Alliances to Resist and Advance

One of the central points of his speech was the value of regional alliances as an instrument to resist attacks against freedom of the press and at the same time innovate collectively. "The presence here of the directors of the national press associations is a concrete example of the collective commitment we share. Exchanging good practices, articulating common strategies and defending freedom of expression together is more urgent than ever today," he affirmed.

You can't innovate with fear

Dutriz also denounced the hostile contexts in which many media outlets in the region operate. From closed newsrooms to journalists forced into exile, through ambiguous legal frameworks that enable censorship, the union leader insisted that there can be no talk of innovation if journalists must self-censor for fear of reprisals. His call was forceful: "We must stop acting as if the deterioration were normal. Because it is not. Every attack on freedom of the press is an attack on people's right to be informed."

Reinvent, Collaborate, Connect

SIPConnect 2025 is developed under three strategic axes: Explore, Co-create and Connect, and will run until Friday, July 18. The conference brings together more than 160 participants from 19 countries —including journalists, editors, media executives, and entrepreneurs— who will work on topics such as artificial intelligence, business models, narrative formats, audiences, and sustainability. As he closed his opening speech, Dutriz left a phrase that set the tone for the conference:
"May these days inspire us, challenge us, and help us build together a stronger, more innovative journalism, connected to the people."