Bárbara Anderson

Bárbara Anderson
Born	(1973-12-04) December 4, 1973 Argentina
Occupation(s)	Journalist, disability rights advocate, speaker, consultant
Years active	1997–present
Known for	Disability rights advocacy, business journalism, editorial innovation

Bárbara Anderson (born December 4, 1973) is an Argentine journalist and advocate for disability rights, recognized for her efforts to promote legal reforms on inclusion through the Yo También Association. She has gained prominence as a business journalist working across various media formats—including print, digital, television, and radio—both domestically and internationally. Additionally, she is known as a speaker and consultant specializing in accessibility and inclusion.

Career

Anderson launched her journalism career in Argentina in 1997, eventually becoming editor-in-chief of the weekly publication Punto a Punto y Mercado. In 2002, she relocated to Mexico City to take on the role of Ideas section editor at Grupo Editorial Expansión.

During her tenure at Expansión until 2014, Anderson spearheaded innovative content management projects, such as redesigning editorial workflows that were later implemented by Time Inc.. She also led the division responsible for women’s magazines, fostering entrepreneurship through initiatives like the Elle México design contest, which was presented as a reality television series.

Since 2013, Anderson has held the position of director of editorial innovation at Grupo Milenio. There, she restructured the Business section, revamped Milenio.com’s design, and overhauled supplements—resulting in a doubling of revenue. She introduced the social magazine CHIC on a national scale and secured a collaboration with The Financial Times to produce the weekly supplement FT Mercado.

To broaden journalistic content offerings, Anderson established the Brand Journalism unit that creates custom content for clients such as Monsanto, Bimbo, Laureate International México, UPS, Cinépolis, and Uber. She also initiated Milenio Foros, a platform dedicated to public debates. For eight years, Anderson hosted Milenio Negocios, a weekly business interview show broadcast on Milenio TV. Up until October 2020, she wrote the business column "Nada personal, solo negocios," which served as inspiration for the informational segment Radar Anderson.

Amid the COVID-19 pandemic in Mexico, Anderson played a key role in launching the Spanish edition of The Guardian in Mexico by developing La-Lista, a digital platform focused on human rights, inclusion, diversity, and environmental topics. La-Lista/The Guardian debuted on January 1, 2021, operating with a virtual newsroom established during the pandemic.

Presently, she contributes columns to both Opinión 51 and Expansión magazine. Since 2002, Anderson has been serving as Mexico correspondent for Argentina’s largest radio network, Cadena 3.

Publications

In 2019, she released her debut book, Los dos hemisferios de Lucca, an autobiographical account detailing her experiences raising her son with cerebral palsy and the outcomes of an innovative treatment he received in India. This work, published by Penguin Random House, was initially introduced at the Guadalajara International Book Fair and later reissued in 2022 for readers in Argentina. In 2023, Netflix secured the adaptation rights to transform the book into a film distributed across 190 countries. The screenplay was crafted by Javier Peñalosa, with Mariana Chenillo directing. Leading roles are portrayed by Bárbara Mori and Juan Pablo Medina.

Her follow-up publication, (IN)visibles, came out in 2022 and highlights the stories of 24 Mexicans with disabilities who have successfully reached their ambitions. Among those featured are athlete Jorge Font, politician Claudia Anaya, and photographer Enrique Covarrubias, who also provided the book’s imagery. The book was showcased at both the Monterrey and Guadalajara International Book Fairs. The October 2023 launch event in Mexico City included a large-scale outdoor exhibit along Avenida Paseo de la Reforma featuring detailed biographies and Braille description cards, drawing an estimated 650,000 visitors. Additionally, a prominent projection on the south wall of the World Trade Center attracted about 450,000 viewers. This publication received two Silver Medals at the 2023 Latino Book Awards for Most Inspirational Nonfiction (Spanish) and Best Website Promoting a Book.

Cómo se dice is a complimentary downloadable dictionary designed for journalists and editors, offering terminology related to disability. Supported by private sector sponsors, it provides recommendations for producing accessible editorial content.

Other activities

In May 2019, she introduced Yo también, Latin America’s pioneering newsletter dedicated exclusively to disability-related news. This platform stands as Mexico’s only fully accessible news website, catering to a demographic that comprises 16.5% of the national population. Its coverage spans a wide range of subjects including education, sports, entertainment, science, and health as they relate to disability issues. Beyond its journalistic mission, the affiliated civil society organization has played a significant role in legislative advancements, contributing to the inclusion of a specific chapter on accessibility within the Telecommunications Reform and supporting the enactment of the Law on the Rights of Girls, Boys, and Adolescents. It also actively participated in embedding comprehensive inclusion measures into Education Reform policies aimed at achieving full inclusivity in all Mexican schools within a 13-year timeframe—a goal reaffirmed during Esteban Moctezuma’s tenure.

Following discrimination faced by her son Lucca in 2016 due to cerebral palsy, she orchestrated an unprecedented collaboration between CONAPRED and PROFECO and promoted partnerships with HearColors, a company specializing in digital accessibility solutions. In 2019, she initiated legal action against Ticketmaster over inaccessible ticket purchasing processes, which led to accessibility improvements beginning with Mexico’s Auditorio Nacional and subsequently expanding to Ticketmaster’s global operations.

Her commitment to advocacy was recognized with the Journalist for Social Change Award in 2020 from Universidad del Valle de México.

Bárbara Anderson is affiliated with the Mexico chapter of the International Women’s Forum and has moderated key events such as Internet Day alongside former President Enrique Peña Nieto, focusing on digital leadership and disability rights.

She holds the position of treasurer on the board of trustees for APAC IAP, Mexico’s Association for People with Cerebral Palsy.