Media Community Mourns Fifth Journalist in 2026

Belize’s media community is mourning the passing of 42-year-old Jovany O’Brien, remembered by colleagues as a reporter with a quiet presence and a sharp sense of humour.

Friends and fellow journalists are reflecting on his contribution to the profession and the personal connections he built along the way. At XTV, where he worked as a reporter, Director Mose Hyde says O’Brien was never one to command attention, but his commitment to the craft was evident.

“He’s very passionate about quality and very passionate about standards, and he would be known, and he was already ready to give insights and give ideas, and that’s what he brought to us,” Hyde said. 

For News 5’s reporter Britney Gordon, O’Brien was one of the first friends she made when she entered journalism. She recalled how he took her under his wing, helped her overcome her nerves and made her feel more comfortable approaching people for interviews. “He just inspired me personally to be really on my best game,” Gordon said. 

News 5’s journalist Benita Keme-Palacio had known O’Brien for more than a decade. They first worked together as medical technologists. O’Brien and Keme-Palacio transitioned career fields into media, and their paths crossed again years later in journalism, where she says he continued to offer guidance. 

“He guided me through a lot of things,” she said. “I remember graduating, fresh out of school, and going into my first job. I was new to the city, and I was new to the work field, and he was one of the co-workers I started with, and he guided me through a lot of things.”

“Transitioning from the medical field to the media field was challenging for me, and again, like he did in the medical field for me, he did the same thing for me, which is guide me whenever we met out on our assignments,” she added.

Tributes have also come from organisations and members of the public. The Statistical Institute of Belize remembered O’Brien as a journalist who helped bring its data to the public.

“At SIB, our work starts with numbers, but it is journalists like Jovany who bring those facts to people across Belize. He helped many understand the country we all share and was always a welcome presence at our quarterly press conferences,” the institute said in an online statement.

O’Brien is the fifth member of Belize’s media community to pass away this year. His death follows the losses of Ruben Morales, Roy Davis, Aaron Humes and Brother Fem Cruz.

“We are definitely deeply saddened that we’re not gonna have Jovany around again,” Hyde added. “He was not loud; he’s as quiet as it gets… but he was steady on the job bringing stories to you.” 

O’Brien devoted much of his journalism to covering sports, pageants, and positive feature stories.