Juan Barrientos

Juan Pablo Barrientos is a journalist from Colombia. In the last 16 years he has worked as a correspondent in Washington for La Fm and Noticias RCN, as editor-in-chief of Teleantioquia Noticias, and as a journalist for La W and Caracol Radio. He also co-founded the investigative media portal Vorágine and has been a professor at various Colombian universities.

With his piece "Let the children come to me" he won the Simón Bolívar National Journalism Award  for the best radio investigation in 2018 and with his piece "There are not 19 but 36 priests involved in a sex scandal in Villavicencio" he won the Award for the best radio news in 2020. Barrientos is the author of two books denouncing sexual assaults and violence against children in Colombia's Catholic Church, "Let the Children Come to Me" and "This is the Lamb of God." He was subsequently sued several times by the Catholic Church.

Due to digital harassment and serious threats, Barrientos was forced to delete his social media accounts. As part of the Berlin Scholarship Program, he is learning how to better protect himself, his sources and his team from digital threats.