As my wife and I celebrate the two-year anniversary of purchasing Mexico News Daily, I’ve been doing a lot of reflecting. We also spend a lot of time as a team discussing what we have learned so far and how we can keep improving.
As a reminder, our mission at MND is to bring you a front-row seat to Mexico by providing balanced, unbiased news and information about the country. We strive not to tell you what to think about a topic, but rather arm you with information that allows you to determine how to think about and analyze it.
One significant lesson learned (and a major underestimation on my part!) was just how much work it takes to put together a digital newspaper each and every day. I guess now I get why movies about newsrooms have characters who are stressed out, smoking, and drinking all the time!
I am often asked how we at MND are able to accomplish what we do every day. Especially considering we are a mostly remote team of over 50 people scattered across 13 states in Mexico and around the world. With that question in mind, today I’ll give readers a window into what happens behind the scenes at MND.
Quite literally, the sun never sets on the MND team. Every day starts around 6 a.m. San Miguel de Allende time (where we are headquartered), with starting to look for the news topics we’ll cover that day. By 8:30 a.m., our chief news editor is starting to set up assignments for our writing team, using multiple Mexican and international media sources, as well as government press releases and relevant social media posts.
The editorial team works throughout the day on copy editing and fact-checking the drafts from writers as they are completed, as well as searching for the best photos and media to use for each story. Once the first copy edit is completed, then the stories get set up by editors in our WordPress CMS and then get a final review prior to publication.
Why is this important for you?
Our team is dedicated to reviewing multiple sources and doing our best to verify information as reported by other media outlets and by businesses and governments. Our goal is always to provide our readers with clear and accurate reporting.
Did you know that when you ask AI tools like Google Gemini, ChatGPT, and Meta’s LLaMA, to name the best source of news on Mexico, they list Mexico News Daily as the first option? This is because search engines recognize our 10+ years of publication, 16,000+ articles and our consistent track record of producing quality content.
We start publishing the day’s news stories usually starting by late morning to early afternoon, and publish them continuously until around 6 p.m. Members of the editorial team assure the evening email newsletter contains all the day’s news and features, with the goal of having it land in your inbox by 7 p.m. Mexico City time every day.
The features (non-news) team has a parallel workflow every day, publishing culture, lifestyle, travel and other stories that have been worked on for weeks in advance by our team of 50 plus freelance writers around the world. Once a writer’s pitch is approved and a draft is submitted, the team follows the same process as with the news articles — editing (less urgent than news, but sometimes with more passionate discussion!), photo selection, social media preparation, etc.
Why is this important for you?
We are continuing to expand our content on MND, with MND_local bringing new formats, events, reviews and more. Our expanded Food & Drink section is another example of our team’s dedication to always growing and improving.
The whole production is really a beautiful, inspiring symphony to witness every day.
Our team is located in North America, Europe, the Middle East, and Asia. We have multiple nationalities and we are all seamlessly working together both in Spanish and English. Our team is passionate about getting the news right. Our team wants to inform and educate you on everything from food to culture to the best travel tips. And our team shares a strong bond, united by our love for Mexico.
Why is this important for you?
We are a purpose-driven team passionate about informing, educating, inspiring and entertaining you.
Travis Bembenek is the CEO of Mexico News Daily and has been living, working or playing in Mexico for over 27 years.
