Metropolitano, a Mexican news outlet, published a recent story profiling how The Red Note podcast examines the history of femicide in Ciudad Juárez, Chihuahua through the voices of victims’ families, journalists, academics, and government figures.
The article centers on an interview with Craig Whitney, director of the project, who outlined the podcast’s scope and ambitions. Ciudad Juárez, Whitney noted, has been a focal point for femicide in Mexico for 25 years, and The Red Note seeks to bring that reality to a global audience. The series is available on Spotify and consists of 10 chapters totaling more than eight hours of research material.
A central element of the project is the involvement of Mexican journalist Lydia Cacho, who serves as executive producer and narrator in both the Spanish and English versions of the podcast.
Whitney told Metropolitano that her participation was essential from the outset. “In the podcast we examine the history of the femicides in Ciudad Juárez in the voices of the families of the victims, journalists who do research on this issue, academics, members of the government to have many perspectives on these cases,” he said, adding that Cacho’s firsthand experience reporting in Juárez during the 1990s, as well as her broader reputation as an investigative journalist and author of Los Demonios del Edén, made her the ideal host.
The project originally began as a feature film before the producers opted for the podcast format, a decision Whitney described as creatively liberating. “It was an opportunity to explore different perspectives, share much more information than in a feature film and explore it more as a sociological story, in the voices of the victims, relatives, journalists, researchers and not in the style of a work of fiction,” he said. “We feel very free in a very honest and strong style.”
Whitney also addressed the challenge of representing Ciudad Juárez fairly to a global audience, pushing back against what he described as reductive narratives about the city. He expressed that it was important to portray not only the femicides themselves, but the broader culture and character of the border community.
As an American working on a project rooted in Mexican experience, Whitney acknowledged initial concern about how the project would be received locally. “I was a little worried that people from the border would think badly about this project,” he said, “and it was very miraculous for me that all the people with whom we spoke found that many people appreciated the realization of this project to share it with the world.”
The podcast is produced in collaboration with U.S. production company Imperative Entertainment and features reporting by Juárez-based journalist Alicia Fernández.