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When Jason Horowitz, The New York Times’s Madrid bureau chief, saw reports this summer that several hundred migrants were crossing the border from Morocco into Ceuta, a Spanish exclave in North Africa, he had to make a decision.
Mr. Horowitz and Carlos Barragán, a researcher and reporter for the bureau, wondered whether it would be worth the nearly eight-hour journey to cover the migration in person.
Soon the reports of several hundred migrants became reports of several thousand. “The number kept ticking up,” Mr. Horowitz said.
Before long, they made the call to travel to Ceuta, and they were glad they did. As some of the first members of the international press to arrive, they witnessed what turned out to be more than 70,000 people crossing the border into a town of about 84,000.
This decision — to report on the news in person, no matter where it was taking place — represents Mr. Horowitz’s reporting style during his tenure with The Times. Last year, he traveled to Lisbon to report on a funicular crash that killed 16 people. In Seville, he covered a disputed restoration of a statue of the Virgin Mary.
In an interview, Mr. Horowitz reflected on his first year as Madrid bureau chief and the story lines he’ll be watching in the months ahead. These are edited excerpts from the conversation.
For about a decade, you covered the Vatican, Rome and the rest of Italy. How and why did you make the jump to Madrid?
It felt very much like it was time to move on after spending so much of my life trying to understand Italy. I fell in love with the place. I married into an Italian family, so it’s a part of me. But I also wanted to keep moving and find out more about Europe.
There is definitely a benefit to expertise, but The Times also likes to keep eyes fresh and rotate. If you’re too comfortable as a reporter, you’re maybe not going to do a good job. Because I’m new to it, it forces me to try and understand it more, and that yields better stories.
In an article about the reaction to Spain’s win in the World Cup, you quoted a 22-year-old woman in Madrid saying it’s a good moment in Spain, and people around her were singing, “I’m Spanish, Spanish, Spanish.” Does this moment feel indicative of the energy in the country right now?
Yes, I feel like the energy is not just pride in being Spanish. I think it’s pride in change. There is the question of Spanish pride and nationalism and, for example, wearing a Spanish flag bracelet to identify yourself as a conservative. That is present and worth understanding but I think it has also been around. What feels fresher and newer to me is this idea that this is a place that is not defined entirely by its recent political past, or even its deep history. This is a place that feels like it’s moving forward.
People do argue if it’s moving in the right direction, if it’s making mistakes. That’s the fight, the political or social debate, that I’m very aware of. Part of my job is to explain that. But that change is what’s fun for a journalist. When things are mixed up, there’s more to write about.
Can you say more about your experience reporting on the influx of migrants in Ceuta?
At first I was just writing what I thought was going to be a quick story about a few hundred migrants crossing the border of Morocco into Ceuta. A trip there would have involved a flight to Málaga, a long drive to a port and then a ferry. But Carlos and I were going to be upset with ourselves the next day if we woke up and realized that something giant had happened.
We got there the morning after the surge started happening. It was a remarkable day to see what turned out to be more than 70,000 people not just crossing the border, but essentially transforming this small town on the northern tip of North Africa. The day had the energy of history with it. It was a moment. And reporters live for moments.
Being there, you want to write the best story you can. You want to show people what’s happening in as many ways as you can, whether you’re writing about it, photographing it or filming some quick video, so that way our audience can see what’s happening in real time.
What stories do you have your eyes on moving forward?
We’re very likely to have more political turmoil in the near future because elections are coming. Pedro Sánchez is a great story. He’s the longest-serving and, arguably, the most prominent left-wing leader in Europe. The fights between Spain and the United States, between Sánchez and Trump, will continue to be interesting. There’s also Spain’s willingness, more than some other European countries, to invite and work with Chinese manufacturing giants.
I’ll be watching how immigration is going to play out: There’s just been a decision to create a pathway to legality for more than a million undocumented people in the country. That is going to have ramifications socially, but also politically, geopolitically.
In many ways, just as Italy felt unexpectedly ahead of the curve on things, I find the same thing here in Spain. Completely different politics, but Spain, because it is changing and willing to do things that other countries might not be, has become a more interesting place to report about.
Why do you think people outside the country should care about what’s happening in Spain?
If I do a good job of finding great stories, writing about really interesting people, then I don’t think that my job of getting people interested is very hard, because Spain’s a fascinating place. The challenge for me is basically telling the country’s story in a way that feels fresh.
I’m a subscriber to the idea that there are no boring stories. There is just boring writing. My job is to make sure that I do this country justice and explain it in all of its maddening and delightful detail.
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