WRITING. 

César Pérez, at 11 years old, saw his dad – publisher and co-owner of the biggest newspaper in Ecuador – at risk of losing his freedom. Pérez learned firsthand what the cost of truth-telling could be in his home country, but when he came to UT-Austin, he knew he wanted to be a journalist. He also knew, before he even arrived, that he'd have to find a way to tell his father's story...

When Ligia, a 33-year-old bioanalyst, left Maracaibo, Venezuela, last year, she and her family brought only three small bags packed with toys, medicine, cash, documents, and three changes of clothes for each family member. In Venezuela, Ligia’s husband lost his job in December, right before New Year’s Eve, and couldn’t find a new one. The rest of their extended family were already out of the country, including in the U.S, Colombia, and Spain. So, Ligia and her husband sold everything they had—their cars, house, TV, and clothes—and began the 10-day trip by car, plane, and foot, from Maracaibo to Katy, Texas, where they hoped to find a better life for their kids: Isabel, 9, Ana, 7, and Lucas, 3...

A surveillance environment in Venezuela has led to the beginning of doubt against free expression – the beginning of self-censorship. Venezuelan journalists have had to find a way to reinvent themselves between censorship, threats, misinformation and media sanctions....

Walking in a prison hallway accompanied by the guards, political prisoner Francisco Marquez felt he was entering a cave. The further he walked, the darker it got — soon, he couldn't see anything. When he arrived at his cell, a filthy, cool cement slab was there as his bed...

Live music venue owners and musicians are worried that more venues will close permanently because of COVID-19 if they don’t take action soon, which prompted the Austin City Council to try and find an economic lifeline for struggling businesses at the Oct. 15 council meeting...

Sometimes a box of cookies is just a box of cookies. But if that box of cookies is bright pink and carries the Wunderkeks logo, it has a more significant meaning – you have found a place where you can let your guard down and be yourself without fear of discrimination...

On April 20, 2021, C. Tangana became the third Spanish artist to participate in NPR's Tiny Desk Concert - series. Between drinks, tapas, and a very familiar choir, the 31-year-old rapper born Antón Alvarez Alfaro compiles some of the songs from the now historic 2021 album El Madrileño... 

The closing day of the Austin City Limits Music Festival feels different than the other days.

A diverse and vibrant audience enjoys every last second of live music in its premiere downtown park. On Sunday, the Latin sazón did not go unnoticed...

"Mila, really became a little engine to take me on my way," opines Nani Garcia about the arrival of her daughter to her life, on a zoom call from Venezuela, right before she is interrupted by an enthusiastic little voice in the background who is looking for her attention...

An invisible hurricane hits the world. 2020, a year that many would remember for the rest of their lives. Covid-19 arrived and flipped everyone’s life upside down...