Latin American journalism is going through a moment of deep sorrow after the death of Raúl Benoit, one of the most influential investigative reporters of the last decades.
The Colombian-American journalist passed away on Friday, January 30 in Miami at the age of 65, after several years of dealing with the after-effects of a stroke and the progressive progression of Parkinson’s disease.
Benoit passed away peacefully, accompanied by his loved ones, leaving behind a legacy that has marked generations of communicators.
Raul Benoit: A farewell confirmed by his family
The news was confirmed by his son, Felipe Benoit, who shared an emotional message on social networks to say goodbye to his father. “Gone is a brave man who always lived for the truth,” he wrote, highlighting the integrity character and tireless vocation that defined the journalist’s life. Since 2015, Benoit’s health had been seriously affected after suffering a stroke that kept him in a coma for three months, an episode that represented a before and after in his professional career and took him away from the screens for good.
Raúl Benoit began his career in journalism at a surprisingly early age. At the age of 16 he began to collaborate with the newspaper El País de Cali, where he later became coordinator of the Gente Joven section. His talent and discipline quickly led him to new spaces, and by the age of 18 he was already presenting and directing youth programs on Caracol Radio, consolidating his own voice within the Colombian media.
Over time, his professional rigor and direct style catapulted him to the international scene. It was at Univision where he reached one of the most recognized stages of his career, when he became a key figure in the investigative program Aquí y Ahora, from which he addressed high-risk issues with great social impact.
A firm commitment against organized crime
Raúl Benoit’s name is forever linked to journalism of denunciation. He was one of the first communicators to expose the infiltration of drug cartels in Colombian politics, a work that cost him constant threats, attacks and episodes that put his life at risk. He was even the victim of a kidnapping ordered by Pablo Escobar, one of the darkest moments of his career.
In 2000, after surviving an attack that killed one of his bodyguards, Benoit was forced to leave his country and go into exile in the United States, where he continued to practice journalism with the same conviction.
Recognized with the Simón Bolívar National Journalism Award in 1987, Raúl Benoit leaves a profound void in Latin American journalism. His courage, professional ethics and commitment to the truth remain as an example for those who believe in the power of journalism as a tool for justice and social transformation.
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