Cristina Pacheco, foremost chronicler of street life in Mexico for half a century, has died at 82

MEXICO CITY — Cristina Pacheco, the foremost chronicler of street life in Mexico City for half a century, died Thursday at 82.

With her newspaper column and television shows, Pacheco shed light on the common, unsung heroes who kept Mexico’s economy and culture alive.

Pacheco was most often seen walking the streets of Mexico City, conducting animated interviews with craftspeople, street vendors, merchants, musicians and people from all walks of life.

“With more than 50 years in the world of journalism, Cristina Pacheco was close to her people and to each and every story she heard on the streets of Mexico,” according to an announcement by her show, “Talking with Cristina,” which confirmed her death.

Her daughter, Laura Emilia Pacheco, also confirmed the death, but did not specify a cause. Pacheco was married to Mexican writer José Emilio Pacheco, who died in 2014.

Pacheco had taken a leave from her television show earlier this month, citing “health reasons, serious health reasons,” without specifying what they were.

Pacheco's trademark television show, “Where We Live,” ran from 1978 to 2009, and in 2010 was recognized by UNESCO as “a memory of the life of Mexico City and other regions in the country.”

She also wrote a long-running column, “Sea of Stories,” in the Mexican newspaper La Jornada, for 34 years.

Pacheco is survived by her two daughters. There was no immediate announcement of funeral plans.

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