Journalism Without Borders: A Conversation with Moises Ávila Roldán
By the 829 Studios Content Team | In Partnership with SBS Comms
In a media landscape increasingly shaped by AI and digital transformation, few journalists embody the value of on-the-ground storytelling like Moises Ávila Roldán. An award-winning foreign correspondent for Agence France-Presse, Moises has spent his career reporting across Latin America and the Caribbean, from Peru to Panama, and from Cuba to Chile. He now covers the immigrant experience from his base in Houston.
We caught up with Moises as part of SBS Comms’ Hispanic Heritage Month series to talk about the nuances of international reporting, the changing face of immigration in the U.S., and how journalism is evolving in an AI-driven world. His insights offer a powerful reminder that while technology is changing the tools of our trade, human connection remains at the heart of great storytelling.
Reporting Across Borders With Empathy
Moises describes his process as part journalist, part cultural anthropologist. Every new assignment, whether in Havana or Houston, begins not with interviews but with immersion. He rides local transportation, shops at neighborhood markets, and pays attention to what people are proud of. “You need to live in the country before you can report on it,” he shared. “And above all, be respectful.”
That sense of humility guides his approach to sourcing stories and building trust with communities. He notes that local blogs, podcasts, and independent voices are often the best sources of insight. “They have their fingers on the pulse of society,” he says. “They show you what people care about — and that’s what makes a story resonate.”
From Natural Disasters to National Crises: The Versatility of a Global Beat
With a career that began covering traffic accidents and political scandals in Lima, Moises credits his radio roots with giving him the discipline to write clearly and quickly. It’s a skill that’s served him well on high-stakes stories. Whether covering hurricanes in Texas or unrest in Central America, his work blends frontline reporting with economic context, offering readers a fuller view of how local events ripple out to global markets.
The Human Side of the Migrant Crisis
One of his most powerful projects is a multimedia documentary following Marcel, a Venezuelan migrant who lost his leg and still made the dangerous trek across the Darien Gap and the U.S. border. Moises and the AFP team followed Marcel’s journey across multiple countries, through remote reporting, on-the-ground footage, and even self-recorded clips submitted by Marcel himself.
The result is a story that humanized a crisis often reduced to numbers and political soundbites. “We didn’t direct him or change his timeline,” Moises explained. “We respected his decisions — and he let us tell his story.”
Journalism in the Age of AI
While Moises embraces the ways AI can extend the reach of stories (think instant translations, or generating captions for multilingual audiences), he’s clear about what machines can’t do: build trust, capture nuance, or wait patiently for that perfect moment of human truth. As he puts it, “AI needs raw material. Journalists create that.”
That doesn’t mean tech should be feared, it just needs to be used wisely. For organizations and storytellers, it’s a powerful reminder that the future of media isn’t just about speed. It’s about substance.
Moises’ Advice for Communicators and Content Creators
- Don’t just research — immerse. Your story will be stronger if you understand the human experience behind the data.
- Respect the people behind your sources. Eye contact, patience, and empathy matter just as much as preparation.
- Adapt to new formats. Gen Z doesn’t want long articles. They want short-form video, digestible audio, and meaningful visuals. Build for them.
- Use AI to amplify, not replace. Let tech help you translate, subtitle, and streamline, but let the storytelling stay human.
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