Miners Already Breaking 'Blood Pact'

While they were trapped, the Chilean miners signed a "blood pact" stating that they’d keep the details of their experience to themselves. But information has spilled as many consent to interviews—though rarely for free, the New York Times reports. “We’re poor—look at the place we live,” said the wife of one miner. “You live off our stories, so why can’t we make money from this opportunity to feed our children?” Miners have reportedly requested anywhere from $40 to $25,000 for interviews. “We paid $500,” said a Japanese newspaper reporter who spoke with the first man to exit the mine. “And it felt like he was withholding details.”

The wife of another said they were taking cash only; the family had already been promised plenty of trips and gifts. Another miner, Mario Sepúlveda, reportedly has an interview in the works with ABC and offered plenty of information to Britain’s Daily Mail, relating tales of darkness, dirty living conditions, and tearful moments. But the miners are by no means all comfortable with the media. “I’ve had nightmares these days,” said one to a throng of reporters. “But the worst nightmare is all of you.”
(More Chilean miners stories.)