Hinostroza has been a major target and opponent of the Ecuadorian government, and has also been a recurring topic of President Rafael Correa's weekly TV and radio talks, which usually last several hours.

"[3] In 2012, after Hinostroza reported on a suspicious loan by the state bank Cofiec to a businessman allegedly associated with a cousin of Correa, she received death threats and took a leave of absence for safety reasons.

[1][6][7] Hinostroza is also the longtime host of the morning news program “La Mañana de 24 Horas,” which is broadcast daily on Teleamazonas.

In addition, shea radio program on 98.1 FM Mundo, is the local correspondent for the international TV network Univision,[7] and writes a column for the newspaper Hoy.

"[8] After presenting a report on an apparent case of government corruption on La Mañana de 24 Horas in 2012, Hinostroza received a number of anonymous, threatening phone calls.

After receiving a call from an unidentified stranger who detailed her young son's daily movements and threatened to kidnap him,[2] Hinostroza decided to take a leave of absence from the news program, which was temporarily taken off the air.

"[12] Correa himself maintained that the government was "seriously investigating" the threats against Hinostroza and "expressed solidarity" with her, but he added that he still considered her "a politician disguised as a journalist.

"[15] Acting Assistant Secretary of State Uzra Zeya praised Hinostroza and other awardees for their "courage" and "commitment to speaking truth to power.

Another factor was that "now the doors of public institutions are hundred percent closed" to Teleamazonas, a situation she characterized as "outrageous, unacceptable, and unbelievable" in a country claiming to be a democracy with "full freedom of expression.

When she traveled to New York City to accept the award, pro-Correa protesters picketed outside the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel "chanting and carrying signs branding Hinostroza a traitor and a liar."

"[23] In a video made in connection with the CPJ award, Hinostroza noted that there were no longer any investigative units in any Ecuadorian media companies, owing largely to government pressure.

[3] After Hinostroza was presented with the CPJ award, Sen. Patrick Leahy paid tribute to her on the floor of the U.S. Senate during the 2013–14 session, describing her as "a courageous Ecuadorian journalist.