Jorge Lourenço dos Santos was shot four times in the town of Santana do Ipanema in northeastern Brazil on 11 July. Dos Santos was both the owner and a host on Criativa FM, a radio station which was run out of his home. An unidentified assailant, who fled the scene in a car, shot the journalist outside his home. According to local reports, investigating authorities have confirmed that the journalist had received death threats in the past and had previously been the target of two attempted killings. Police are reportedly investigating whether dos Santos’ murder could have been politically motivated, as the journalist was also politically active, having run for council in the nearby town of Major Isidoro in 1996 and 2000.

José Carlos Araújo was killed by two assailants on 24 April as he left a recording studio at the radio station for which he worked, Timbaúba FM, in North-eastern Brazil. Three days later, police arrested the alleged murderer, Helton Jonas Gonçalves de Oliveira, aged 18. Local media have reported that de Oliveira confessed to having killed Araújo after the journalist accused him in his programme, "José Carlos Entrevista" of being behind several murders. Araújo had used the programme to expose the existence of murder squads and the alleged involvement of local figures in criminal cases. De Oliveira, along with his accomplice Marcelo Melo, 22, reportedly borrowed a motorcycle from a third individual to kill the journalist.

Gregorio Rodriguez, a photographer with “El Debate”, a newspaper with editions in cities of Culiacan and Mazatlan, was killed by unidentified gunmen on 27 November in the northwestern state of Sinaloa. The journalist had been eating dinner with his family in a local restaurant in the community of Escuinapa when several armed men approached his table and opened fire. Rodriguez died instantly. The motive for the murder is not yet known, however the state of Sinaloa is known to be home to many of Mexico’s top drug bosses.

Francisco Arratia Saldierna was abducted and tortured to death on 31 August in the northeastern city of Matamoros, Tamaulipas state. Saldierna was a political journalist who often covered sensitive issues such corruption, drug-trafficking and organised crime. His commentaries appeared in four newspapers in the region, “El Imparcial”, “El Regional”, “Mercurio” and “El Cinco”. He was reportedly lured by unknown assailants out of his garage and was found just over an hour later, lying seriously wounded in front of the local Red Cross offices. Saldierna died in hospital a few hours later as a result of a broken skull and fingers and burns and injuries on his stomach and shoulders.

Francisco Javier Ortiz Franco was gunned down by unidentified assailants in the border city of Tijuana on 22 June. According to reports, Ortiz Franco, a lawyer and co-editor of the Tijuana-based weekly Zeta, had just left a physical therapy clinic with his two children when masked gunmen in a vehicle pulled up to his car and shot him four times in the head and neck. The journalist died at the scene. His children were unharmed. Ortiz Franco was one of the founders of Zeta as well as a member of its editorial board. He was reportedly involved in many of the newspaper’s investigative reports. In addition, Ortiz Franco was a member of a working group jointly created by the Mexican government and the Inter-American Press Association with a mandate to review the official investigations and legal proceedings on the murders of Héctor Félix Miranda, Zeta’s co-founder, and Víctor Manuel Oropeza, a columnist with the Diario de Juárez newspaper. A clear motive for the attack has not yet been found, however local authorities have launched an investigation into the murder. The newspaper has also reportedly launched its own investigation.

Roberto Javier Mora García was stabbed to death on 19 March near his home in the town of Nuevo Laredo, near the US border. The journalist was editorial director of the daily El Mañana and editor of the weekly North Mexico Business. Mora was known for publishing articles about Golfo, a local drug trafficking cartel. No motive has yet to be found for the his murder, however, local police reportedly ruled out theft as a motive, after finding Mora García’s wallet, watch and car keys at the scene of the crime.

María José Bravo was fatally shot outside an electoral office in the city of Juigalpa on 9 November. According to local sources, Bravo, a correspondent for the Managua daily La Prensa, had just exited the vote-counting centre and was talking to a group of people when she was shot once at close range. She was taken to a hospital but declared dead on arrival. Bravo had been covering protests over the results of the 7 November elections in two municipalities. According to “La Prensa”, police have detained Eugenio Hernández González, a former mayor of the town of El Ayote, and identified him as the main suspect in Bravo’s death. Police reportedly took a .38-caliber handgun from Hernández. Some witnesses interviewed by “La Prensa“ claimed to have seen Hernández reach for a handgun just before Bravo was shot. It is unclear whether Bravo was targeted, and, if so, what the motive for her killing was.

Carlos José Guadamuz was shot as he was arriving to work on 10 February in the capital city of Managua. The journalist, who was a host of Dardos al centro on Canal 23 television station, was struck at point-blank range by a gunman while stepping out of his vehicle. The gunmen, identified as William Hurtado García, a local merchant and a security guard, was subsequently caught while fleeing the scene and apprehended by police. Guadamuz, a former high-ranking member of the opposition Frente Sandinista de Liberación Nacional (FSLN) party, was imprisoned in the late 1960s for opposing Nicaraguan dictator Anastasio Somoza. Although members of his family have reportedly said the journalist had previously received death threats, no motive for his slaying has been found.

Antonio de la Torre Echeandía was stabbed to death on 14 February by two assailants on his way home from a party. De la Torre hosted a programme on Radio Órbita in the city of Yungay, northern Peru. The journalist was a harsh critic of the city’s mayor, Amaro León, whom he accused of corruption. Before he died, de la Torre reportedly identified one of his attackers as "El Negro," a nickname for Hipólito Casiano Vega Jara, who worked as a driver for mayor León office. In 2002, de la Torre had worked as a campaign chief for León and was appointed as head of communications following León’s election. De la Torre resigned, however, three months after the mayor’s appointment to office after discovering several instances of alleged corruption. The police have arrested Vega. León and his daughter have also reportedly been detained on charges of masterminding de la Torre’s murder.

Alberto Rivera Fernández was killed by two unidentified individuals while working in his office in the city of Pucallpa, eastern Peru, on 21 April. The journalist, a former member of parliament and president of the Ucayali Journalists’ Federation, was the host of "Transparencia", a radio programme that was broadcasted daily on the Frecuencia Oriental radio station. Rivera was known for his strong opposition to local and regional authorities because of certain land dealings. However, no apparent motive is yet known for his murder.