Between the years 2007-2009 and 2014-2016, which corresponded to efforts by the undersigned at the head of the National Press Association (ANP), I met two honest men and journalism teachers: Juan Javier Zeballos (1943-2011) and Juan León Cornejo. (1942-2015). It was also a privilege for the ANP to have them as executive directors. With their suitability, experience and flawless professional career, both marked a before and after in a benchmark organization for the Bolivian press. In their long career, both Zeballos and Cornejo were also correspondents for international news agencies such as Reuters, ANSA and AP.
“The virtue of serious journalism is that, despite its mistakes, it is honest”, “bad journalism does not exist, simply because it cannot be called journalism.” “I believe in 24-hour journalism, anyone who does not have the blood of a journalist should not look for a mechanism to earn money in this trade because it is not for that or for figuration,” Juan Javier stressed in his workshops for journalists. Juan León was, in turn, recognized as an outstanding defender of democracy and freedom of expression by the Association of Journalists of La Paz.
Together with my unforgettable mentor Pedro Rivero Mercado, Father José Gramunt de Moragas and Lorenzo Carri, Alfonso Prudencio Claure (Paulovich), Luis Ramiro Beltrán, they have left an invaluable legacy in national journalism. I have allowed myself to evoke his memory when 85 years ago President Germán Busch issued the DS that recognized journalistic activity as a profession in the country. Hello journalists!
