La Polaka Journalist Flees To El Paso For Safety

EL PASO, Texas — He has been called sensationalistic and a “yellow” journalist. But now Jorge Luis Aguirre says he is being targeted for his coverage of the violence in Juarez.

He said he has made the move to El Paso for his safety.

Aguirre said the language in his tabloid style of reporting is nothing more than common speak, a satirical way of dealing with the gruesome reality of the bloodbath plaguing Juarez.

He said it was a phone call saying his life was next that finally prompted him to skip out of Juarez and move to El Paso.

Aguirre runs LaPolaka.com, a Spanish-language news Web site focusing on Juarez and El Paso.

It uses bold headlines to get readers’ attention.

He referred to a bloody murder as a “diabolic barbecue,” and dubbed another “Saturday narco fever.”

“I use the language of the people, I say things the way the people do…Mexicans bring to life political realities using sarcasm and black humor. We’re also looking for a joke,” Aguirre said.

He said he thinks satire is also a psychological way of masking the horror crippling the morale in Juarez.

“if you don’t see it through black humor, it’s depressing, you’ll die of depression. I just want people to read, then when they’re reading they’ll get informed.”

According to Aguirre, LaPolaka.com gets between 25,000 and 30,000 hits a day. He plans on staying in the U.S. Even if it means applying for asylum.