Among Many Victims in Mexico, There Was One Who Never Existed

On the Media

• Episode: Among Many Victims in Mexico, There Was One Who Never Existed
• Website: On the Media
• Feed URL: http://feeds.wnyc.org/onthemedia
• Duration: 00:10:20
• Published: 2017-09-28 06:00

In Central Mexico, rescuers continue to sift through piles of rubble left by last week's 7.1 magnitude earthquake. Hundreds of volunteers have joined the rescue effort. One of the most widely reported stories from the earthquake reveals how the people in Mexico are coping with the earthquake. In the first couple days after it struck, media in Mexico and around the world focused on the story of a 12-year-old girl. She was trapped in the rubble of school building, communicating with rescuers, wiggling her fingers, and asking rescuers for water. She said her name was Frida Sofia, and she didn't exist at all. 

Brooke talks with Rodrigo Cervantes, the Mexico City bureau chief for KJZZ, about his reporting from rescue sites in the city, the mystery of Frida Sofia, and what the confusion reveals about distrust in media and the government.