Mercedes Gallego

Mercedes Gallego (born July 4, 1970) is a Spanish journalist and author who specializes in foreign policy and the coverage of conflicts, wars, and natural disasters. She has served as a foreign correspondent for various Spanish newspapers since 1994. In 2003 she was the only Spanish female journalist who covered the invasion of Iraq as an embedded journalist among the US troops. Her experience as a female reporter in Iraq was captured in her non-fiction book Más allá de la batalla: una corresponsal de guerra en Irak (Beyond the Battle: A War Correspondent in Iraq), which uncovered the sexual abuses that she witnessed within the military. She also coauthored the award-winning documentary Rape in the Ranks: the Enemy Within with Belgian reporter Pascal Bourgaux in 2009. Currently she is the US Bureau Chief for Vocento Media Group and is a frequent guest of Channel NY1 Noticias as a political commentator on the show “Pura Política”.

Early life and education Mercedes Gallego was born in Sabadell (Barcelona) and raised in Jerez de la Frontera (Cádiz), Spain. She completed a BA degree in journalism from the Complutense University of Madrid in 1994. It is a raw, first person narrative of the war that exposes sexual abuses within the military, For this work she has received awards from Intereconomía Radio, El País, the Messengers of Peace Association and a special mention from the Miguel Gil Foundation. In 2009 she coauthored the documentary Rape in the Ranks: The Enemy Within for France2 Télévision with Belgian reporter Pascale Bourgaux. The 30-minute-film received the Bronze Remi Award at the 2009 Annual World Fest Houston International Film Festival and in 2010 the Best Investigative Documentary at the New York International Independent Film and Video Festival.

Gallego has given numerous lectures in Spanish as well as American universities. She has also shared the stage with Tim Robbins for a discussion of his play Embedded in New York City and is frequently invited to comment on US politics in panels and international TV shows. She has been interviewed by NBC Telemundo, Telemadrid, Telecinco, Antena 3, CNN+, ABC, El Periódico de Catalunya, El Nuevo Herald and her work has been reviewed and cited by many.

Currently, she works in New York as the US Bureau Chief of the 13 syndicated newspapers of the Vocento Media Group, which reaches over 5 million readers in Spain, and is a frequent guest of Channel NY1 Noticias as a political commentator on the show Pura Política.

Awards Mercedes Gallego has been the recipient of several prestigious awards. In 2003 she received the prize for Best Journalist of the Year by Intereconomía Radio and other media, Mercedes Gallego has written a book and a documentary about her observations during the Iraq War and sexual abuses in the military in general:

Gallego, Mercedes. Más allá de la batalla: Una corresponsal de guerra en Irak. Madrid: Temas De Hoy, 2003. Print. Rape in the Ranks: The Enemy Within. Directed by Pascal Bourgaux; Screenplay by Pascal Bourgaux and Mercedes Gallego. France2, 2009. Film.

She has also collaborated with other authors in the publication of books on the subject:

Albertini, Stefano, Carlos Fresneda, and Ana Alonso. Julio Anguita Parrado: Batalla sin medalla. Madrid, España: Foca, 2004. Print. Katovsky, Bill and Timothy Carlson. Embedded: The Media at War in Iraq. Guilford, CT: Lyons, 2003. Print. Ericson, Patrick and Juan Ramón Galvez. Anochece en Irak. Madrid, España: Guadalturia, 2010. Print.