Mario Murillo
Vice Dean, Professor of Radio, Television, Film, LHSC Hofstra University
- Hempstead NY
Prof. Murillo has special interest in community-based radio journalism, Latin American studies, citizen's media, and civic engagement.
Media
Social
Biography
Industry Expertise
Areas of Expertise
Education
New York Unversity
M.A.
Media Ecology
New York University
B.A.
International Politics and Journalism
Languages
- Spanish
Media Appearances
Colombians Reject Peace Deal in Stunning Referendum, Advocates Cite Climate of "Intimidation & Fear"
Democracy Now! online
2016-10-03
In Colombia, voters have rejected a peace agreement between the government and the nation’s largest rebel group in a shocking turn of events that threatens to prolong the nation’s 52-year-old civil war. By a razor-thin vote of 50.2 to 49.8 percent, Colombians rejected the peace deal hammered out with the FARC guerrilla movement and signed just days ago by President Juan Manuel Santos. It was a stunning upset for a referendum that was expected to pass overwhelmingly. We speak to Mario Murillo, a longtime Colombian activist and author of 'Colombia and the United States: War, Unrest, and Destabilization...'
Colombia & FARC Agree to Ceasefire in Historic Peace Deal, Begin Long Process of Implementation
Democracy Now! online
2016-06-23
Mario Murillo: "It’s an incredible moment in Colombian history, given the long-standing nature of this conflict. And it is indeed the beginning of the end of the military conflict between the government and the FARC rebels. It is not necessarily the end of the war, and that’s one thing that we have to be very cautious about, because it’s going to be a long process of implementation and of also securing the many different points of the agenda, which is—it was almost a four-year process that took place. They were discussing a whole set of issues that are clearly not going to be resolved overnight, and that people have to remain really vigilant to make sure that they are indeed followed up on."
Immigration issues addressed at Hofstra conference
Long Island Report online
2015-03-27
Over 100 community leaders and organizers were personally invited to attend the five-hour summit that was also open to the public. The morning began with opening remarks from Slutsky, co-director of Hofstra’s Center for Civic Engagement Mario Murillo, Lawrence Levy of the National Center for Suburban Studies, and Patrick Young of CARECEN...
Activists and Journalists Struggle to Make Colombia’s War Visible in the U.S.
Latin America News Dispatch online
2014-10-28
“If you check the news, before 9/11, Colombia was widely covered,” says Mario Murillo, radio producer, author of the book ‘Colombia and the United States: War, Unrest and Destabilization’, and professor of radio, television and film at Hofstra University. “But after 9/11, the coverage dropped.”
Murillo remembers that former U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell was set to travel to Colombia before the Sept. 11 attacks to talk about a peace agreement between the Colombian Government and the FARC, but had to fly to Washington because of the attacks. Since then, the news media have focused more on Afghanistan and the Middle East. “The White House has an enormous power to determine the news agenda,” Murillo explains.
Colombian Indians Stand Up to Violence
Boston Globe online
2009-01-18
"The level of organization and commitment that the communities have, and how much they resist all external threats to their land, is a clear example of strength," said Mario Murillo, a Hofstra University professor who is writing a book on Colombia's indigenous communities.
"But it also points up the challenges they face, surrounded as they are by forces that pose a severe threat."
Research Focus
Topics of interest include:
indigenous communities, Colombia and U.S. policy, community development and citizen's media
Articles
Colombia’s Minga Under Pressure
NACLA Report on the AmericasSeptember/October 2010
Prof. Murillo writes: "In 2008, Colombia's indigenous organizations lead a high-profile, six-week mobilization to confront the government of President Alvaro Uribe..."
The 2008 Indigenous and Popular Minga in Colombia: Civil Resistance and Alternative Communication Practices
Socialism and Democracy2009-12-04
Prof. Murillo writes: "The word minga comes from the indigenous Quechua language of the Andean region, and refers to a collective work effort whereby everybody in the community commits all their resources and time to achieve a common objective..."
Embattled Cauca: A New Wave of Violence and Indigenous Resistance
NACLA Report on the AmericasJuly/August 2009
Prof. Murillo writes, "December 16 was not a day of joy for Aida Quilcue and her family. While most Colombians were kicking off the first night of La Novena, the traditional nine-day countdown to Christmas, [she] was grieving yet another day of violence in her community, this time striking her own family."
