News Anchor Fired During Live Show

A Mexicali news anchor was fired during a live broadcast earlier this week.

Gustavo Macalpin criticized Carlos Torres, the husband of Baja California Marina del Pilar Ávila Olmeda, for being appointed by the Tijuana mayor to the role of special projects coordinator during his opinion segment on Ciudadano 2.0 before receiving a text message from an unknown person, at which point Channel 66 owner and general manager Luis Arnoldo Cabada appeared live on the broadcast. Macalpin and Cabada shared a hug before the anchor's firing was announced live on the broadcast.

“I came to thank you for your last six years of work,” Cabada said in Spanish. “I thank you for what you have done until today... but this is your last day.”

“Sure?” Macalpin responded. “This is a surprise... in the manner it was informed.”

Macalpin later shared a TikTok explaining that his segment, which includes political criticism, was likely a reason for his firing.

"They tell me that this is my last day, without prior notice, after seven years at the helm -I say this with great pride- of the most successful program of this channel (...) Look, what I do is political criticism, so I think you can draw your own conclusions", he said in the social media post.

Macalpin did, however, clarify that he doesn't believe his termination was specifically caused by his criticism made of Torres.

"I don't think it was an impulse issue, I think it is something that the owner of the TV station had already decided after a long time", he added.

The governor denied seeing the on-air firing and said she considers Macalpin a friend to herself and her family.

“We don't know why he was dismissed yesterday from a media outlet,” the governor wrote on her Facebook account. “I will always defend freedom of speech.... we all have the right to express ourselves.”