El Nuevo Herald, the truth and lies
By
Lorenzo Gonzalo Read Spanish Version
People
in general don’t like to read the official press, except for party
militants or members of organizations affiliated to certain political
concepts, who do so for the purpose of informing themselves about the
particular tasks those organizations are carrying out. Even so,
almost all are reluctant to accept those aspects that distort reality
with crude evidence.
This
morning I read The Miami Granma, that is to say, I read El Nuevo
Herald.
There’s
nothing wrong about reading the daily Granma in Cuba, because a label
atop Page One says clearly that the newspaper is the official organ
of the Communist Party of Cuba. That means that its editorial and
news lines follow the strict political parameters set by that party.
There’s
nothing wrong about reading El Nuevo Herald in Miami, either, except
that this newspaper does not proclaim its militant stance against
Castro, against the Cuban government and against organizations of any
kind that are legally registered in Cuba. Its editorial line on other
issues follows the usual alignments of any other newspaper and shows
a specific political criterion, based on the beliefs and concepts of
its owners. Not so regarding news about Cuba, where the editorial
line adheres to the opinions of insurrectionist organizations in
Miami that combat the Cuban government, not only in political terms
but also in terms of total intolerance, including violence.
Of
the two newspapers, I prefer Granma, because at least it makes it
clear to me that it is a party-oriented medium. If I choose to read
it, I read between the lines in order to make sure that I can
separate reality from the more partisan ideas.
I
cannot do that with El Nuevo Herald, because it lacks a clarifying
note that says that, beyond the opinions and bias we all have, the
newspaper expresses a rank militant line. For this reason, a reader
might think that it is an objective vehicle of information, whereas
the paper is far from that style, especially when it broaches the
news and information about Cuba, more so when it mentions the Cuban
government or the dissidents.
But
even though I prefer Granma to El Nuevo Herald, I must read the
latter every morning, because I am a writer and commentator for a
radio program in Miami and need to know what the major newspapers in
various cities and countries are saying, especially the Miami media.
El
Nuevo Herald’s front page for Thursday, Dec. 11, says the Cuban
government arrested 30 people to bar them from attending public acts
to celebrate Human Rights Day, Dec. 10, the date when the Universal
Declaration of Human Rights was proclaimed.
However,
next to that front-page headline there is a photograph that shows
about 20 women dressed in white, climbing the steps of the Capitol
building in Havana. The news presentation is confusing, because the
headline suggests the government did not tolerate any celebration of
Human Rights Day, yet the picture shows these women who evidently
gathered to celebrate Human Rights Day and at the same time to
protest against other things they consider unfair, among them the
imprisonment of some of the demonstrators’ husbands.
I
am not going to pass judgment on the women or the government, but I
must point out that the husbands reportedly received money and
resources from the U.S. government, through its Havana embassy, to
carry out activities against the Cuban government, which is something
no government will permit.
For
its part, the government upholds its rule to not grant permits for
any demonstrations that are intended to criticize or denounce
practices that may affect (or do affect) a specific sector of the
population. It has not established clear mechanisms that involve, in
a more collective manner, the protests of citizens who are not
institutionalized.
Within
this landscape of controversy, El Nuevo Herald, as a newspaper
supposedly independent from any political party or organization,
always leaves a bitter taste in our lips, as we wonder how much truth
— or how much untruth — is contained in the news from Cuba
published on its pages.
Lorenzo
Gonzalo is deputy director of Radio Miami.
