Journalism and immigration, the problems of a dialogue

The reader Albert Martín Ballesta sent me an email that raises the issue of journalistic treatment of immigration, delicate in essence and even more so when it is related to crime and at a time of very serious tension in Ceuta and Melilla. I reproduce the part that gets to the heart of the matter and thank him for such a well-reasoned proposal for reflection.“I am making this comment following the news in ARA that a minor was shot dead in a park in Barcelona. I see that usually, when discussing crimes, homicides, etc., the nationality of the victim or aggressors is not reported. I understand the argument often given of not wanting to stigmatize the possible condition of being a foreigner/immigrant (we are all people) and not wanting to give arguments to xenophobes and the far-right, but:- I think this criterion corresponds to a time when immigration did not represent the current population volume;- it is not a statistical sample, obviously, but I have observed in my environment, quite diverse and with different levels of education and a rather left-wing mentality, that the first thought when faced with these facts is that they are foreigners (I myself admit that it is the first thing that comes to my mind before making the intellectual effort to relativize it), therefore:- if we do not state the origin and in the absence of this data, 100% of criminal acts are attributed by default to immigration (and this is sinking in);- if we state the origin, two things can happen. One, that the % of perpetrators and victims is more evenly distributed between nationals and immigrants. The other, that the % attributable to immigration is higher than what would correspond to its demographic weight, in which case we really have a problem as a society and we cannot hide our heads in the sand. Because, indeed, we are all people, but in the second hypothesis, cultural origin in its negative consequences (Latin gangs, for example), the breeding ground that the vulnerability of most of those who arrive represents, the population increase resulting from family reunification and biological reproduction itself, and the fact that it is doubtful that they will find the work that their parents do not find, etc., lead us to a situation of social conflict in crescendo which cannot be ignored by a media outlet (because we are surprised later by how the far right is rising). Thus, for example —he concludes—, in one of the magnificent dossiers that ARA produces, as for the piece he dedicated to immigration and crime, if analyzed from an optical perspective other than that of the newspaper, it was easy to deduce that, with less percentage of foreigners, there would be many fewer crimes of all kinds. As a friend told me: it is very clear that the vast majority of immigrants are not criminals, but if 2 million have come, and only 1% are, the police have a problem and society even more".The deputy director, Ignasi Aragay, gives us the newspaper's version:“Regarding the question of whether nationality, origin, or ethnicity should be identified when talking about people who have committed crimes, the newspaper's general criterion is not to do so in order not to stigmatize groups. An exception is only made when it is considered relevant for the understanding of the news itself: for example, if it is a "Latin" gang or a mafia group linked to a specific nationality or geographical area.In any case, it is a debate that we have open internally because, in effect, Catalan society is today much more diverse than a few decades ago and, therefore, the identification of this diversity increasingly provides more keys when explaining relevant collective phenomena, whether in the issue of citizen security (thefts and street violence) or in other relevant realities in the fields of education, housing, the labor market, sexual abuse, mental health, etc.At the same time, we are aware that, in the context of growing polarization, both identifying and not identifying origins and identities in news with a criminal background can be easily manipulated, misinterpreted, and distorted. This is why, increasingly, we analyze it on a case-by-case basis and monitor how we say it (or don't say it) and the relevance we give it (for example, whether or not we include it in the headline elements)".Faced with such a sensitive issue, the most honest way for journalism to address it is by strictly following deontological codes. The Deontological Code of Journalism in Catalonia and that of the Federation of Associations of Journalists of Spain (FAPE), updated in 2025 and 2026, respectively, determine not to mark origins, and both have elaborated annexes on the specific topic, in order to proscribe xenophobia. This aspect deserves, if appropriate, double attention, not only for the strict respect of human rights, but also to avoid playing into the hands of rising ultra-populisms that focus their speeches on curtailing the rights of immigrants.The codes, however, foresee informational exceptions with generic origin denomination, gangs or mafias defined by a locative to which the reader and the deputy director also refer; the extension of the news about the death of the young man (July 4) that the reader mentions suggests that it could be related to Latin gangs. The debate proposed by Albert Martín Ballesta, with a broad civic trajectory, must also be taken into account to avoid the criminalization of immigration due to an elliptical semantic that leads to inferring that the anonymity of the origin is due to the fact that the delinquent is a foreigner. If we take the sadly current problem of domestic and gender violence, which is the one with the most journalistic prevalence, we will see that, according to contrasted data from various statistical sources, the majority of aggressors or those reported are of Spanish nationality.We must contextualize that we are at a moment of redefinition of citizenship due to the exponential growth of immigration noted by the sender. We come from an integrating tradition —Campalans, Vicens, Candel...— which President Pujol institutionally collects and disseminates with conviction and strength, and which culminates in the theory of concentric identities propelled by President Maragall, based on the political articles of grandfather Joan and Václav Havel. The 2006 Statute, which has an anthological preamble by Quim Nadal, where Catalonia is spoken of as a nation, opens —first sentence!— with a song to diversity: “Catalonia has been made over time with the contributions of energies from many generations, from many traditions and cultures, which have found a land of welcome here”. When immigration figures skyrocket, sociological research provides a constant re-evaluation at the intersection of integration and multiculturalism, and it is normal for origins to be mentioned in a natural, non-malicious way, such as in the article of June 27 about the young promises of Barça, La Masia that can become the country by synecdoche, the “my home is your home if anyone has homes” of the great Jaume Sisa. I have verified that the writing of ARA has it very much under control and has demonstrated it extensively, with the piece on immigration and crime that quotes Martín Ballesta, the rest of the 15 articles from the dossier of February 11, 2024 on immigration, and the numerous reports, opinion articles, and other dossiers published on the subject.The Reader's Advocate takes note of the doubts, suggestions, criticisms, and complaints about the newspaper's content in its digital and print editions, and ensures that the treatment of information is in accordance with the deontological codes.To contact the Reader's Advocate you can send an email to eldefensor@ara.cat or record a message of no more than one minute to the WhatsApp number 653784787. In all cases, identification with name, surnames and DNI number is required.