KJZZ in Phoenix has reestablished a news bureau in northern Mexico, expanding its capacity to cover trade, border-crossing and other issues from Hermosillo, Sonora.
Senior Field Correspondent Nina Kravinsky, a former assistant producer for NPR, began reporting in November for KJZZ News and the Fronteras Desk, its news site focused on Arizona’s border with Mexico. The Hermosillo bureau opened in 2018 through a partnership with Universidad Tecnológica de Hermosillo, according to KJZZ GM Jon Hoban.
After the previous reporter left in August 2023, KJZZ and Fronteras ran a prolonged search for a journalist with the unique skills needed for the job, including fluency in Spanish.
“She hit the ground running,” Hoban said of Kravinsky. “She’s been doing a little bit of border coverage and primarily the business and tariff news that has been swirling around, and daily news and feature stories.” He’s pleased that KJZZ is now able to report those stories from inside Mexico.
KJZZ previously operated a bureau in Mexico City but closed it in 2021 due to financial shortfalls. Story development was also a problem because Mexico City is so far away from KJZZ’s service area, Hoban said.
Hermosillo is much closer — about 176 miles from the U.S.–Mexico border and 354 miles from Phoenix. Hermosillo, which is the capital of Sonora, is also an ideal location to report on trade ties between Sonora and Arizona, which has been a focus for Arizona Gov. Katie Hobbs, Hoban said.
UTH, KJZZ’s partner in running the bureau, provides workspace and sponsors visas for the journalists who work there, according to Kravinsky.
Kravinsky has always loved the Spanish language, she said. She majored in political science and Spanish at the University of Wisconsin and studied abroad in Argentina.
Moving to Mexico appealed to Kravinsky because her husband is originally from Mexico, she said.
“We’ve talked for a long time about figuring out ways to move to Mexico … to explore this place where his family is from,” Kravinsky said. “Northern Mexico has amazing food and a great culture, and it’s just a cool place to explore both in terms of nature and people and politics and all of those things.”
‘Starting from square one’
Drawing on her Spanish-language skills for work is exciting, Kravinsky said. The new job has allowed her to explore and spread her wings, but it’s also challenging to develop a reporting beat in a new country.
“So [I’m] just sort of like starting from square one in a lot of ways, knowledge wise,” she added. Figuring out the responsibilities of different city officials and who to contact in the state government has been part of the learning curve.
Michel Marizco, senior editor of the Fronteras Desk, described Kravinsky as a “special kind of talent.” She jumped right into reporting on Mexico’s preparations for potential mass deportations from the U.S. and Mexico’s response to the incoming Trump administration.
“She’s finding these stories as they’re happening,” Marizco said. “We’re not chasing after something that’s already been reported. She’s the one breaking news.” Kravinsky works consistently with NPR’s newscast team, so her reporting is also reaching national audiences.
“She’s really representing what the Fronteras Desk and KJZZ News hope to achieve, which is bringing stories that are lesser known on this side of the border to our listeners here in Arizona,” Marizco said.
Having a reporter in Sonora is important for building relationships and trust that lead to richer and more nuanced coverage of the region, Marizco said.
“Arizona and the state of Sonora have a long history of families and relationships that really traverse that border and live and work across it every day,” Marizco said. Long-established families in both states, not just those living on the border, have deep connections, he said.
Kravinsky hopes her reporting will help paint a more complete picture of the people who live and work in Hermosillo and Mexico, especially for Americans who have never travelled there, she said.
“Bringing … a better understanding of just what life is like here … is really valuable,” Kravinsky said.
For example, on Inauguration Day Jan. 20, Kravinsky went to a public plaza to ask people what they thought about President Trump’s return to the White House. Everyone she spoke with had very nuanced perspectives, she said. It was clear they were paying attention to the political transition in the U.S, which is something that she wants people in the U.S. to know.
“It’s important for folks in the U.S. to sort of have a broader understanding of what people here think,” the unique challenges they face and the beauty of the landscape and culture.