Mexico moves to change law over US anti-immigrant TV ads

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Mexico’s President Claudia Sheinbaum is pushing lawmakers to swiftly ban advertising by foreign governments after the Trump administration launched television spots threatening to “hunt” down “illegal” immigrants.

The advert features US homeland security secretary Kristi Noem telling migrants: “If you come to our country and you break our laws, we will hunt you down.”

It was first released in February as part of a $200mn anti-immigration campaign and aired in Mexico during football matches last weekend. The ad shows people being rounded up by authorities, rushing across the border and apparently dealing drugs.

Sheinbaum reacted forcefully to the ads this week, calling them “discriminatory” and asking for them to be taken down.

She has sent Mexico’s senate a bill to stop foreign governments advertising on radio and television, except for cultural or tourism promotions. Senators will discuss the legislation in committee on Thursday and are expected to pass it on Monday, when the bill will progress to the lower house.

“Foreign governments shouldn’t be spreading propaganda in our country, neither political, nor ideological or anything like it,” said Sheinbaum, who has until now overwhelmingly strived to placate US President Donald Trump.

The ads were shown on primetime Mexican television by the country’s biggest broadcaster, Grupo Televisa. 

Mexicans have mostly rallied around Sheinbaum since Trump began threatening the country with tariffs and measures against drug cartels: her popularity has risen above 80 per cent. Her party Morena’s coalition holds a dominant majority in congress, and opposition lawmakers have also condemned the Trump ads.

The proposed legislation would introduce hefty fines for media companies that broke the rules, and also includes separate changes to cement Sheinbaum’s efforts to dismantle and replace Mexico’s telecoms regulator.

Televisa, in particular, is caught between the governments of Mexico — which grants its local concession — and the US, where it owns the largest Spanish-language broadcaster, Univision. Once fiercely critical of Trump, the network was seen as having softened its coverage of him during last year’s presidential election campaign.

Televisa did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The US Department of Homeland Security said the ad campaign was “working”. “The data shows the world is hearing our message,” it said in a statement.

Since Trump took office, the number of migrants being apprehended at the border has hit the lowest levels in decades. Mexico’s politicians are respectful of migrants in their public statements, but authorities have significantly stepped up detentions and increased the busloads of migrants they send further south.

Mexico’s second-largest broadcaster, TV Azteca, said in a statement it had “rejected” a request to air the ad.

The country’s National Council for the Prevention of Discrimination said the advert was an “affront to human dignity” that violated the constitution, and asked for it to be taken down.