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Maduro accused of silencing dissent as Venezuelan press runs short of paper
Source: The Guardian
Maduro accused of silencing dissent as Venezuelan press runs short of paper
Strict currency controls that experts say have crippled economy are
preventing publishers from importing newsprint
Virginia López in Caracas
theguardian.com, Wednesday 12 February 2014 15.17 GMT
For the editors of Venezuela's oldest newspaper, going web-only is not a commercial strategy to reflect dwindling circulation figures. El Impulso halved its print edition from four sections to two in October, and on Friday it will be reduced to one, because the regional daily is running out of paper.
A wave of shortages in Venezuela over the past year have left people scrambling to find anything from toilet paper to cooking oil and car parts. The shortages have been blamed on strict currency controls put in place more than a decade ago to prevent the flight of capital. Experts say the controls have crippled the economy and led to inflation reaching 56%, the highest in the world.
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But not every newspaper has survived the newsprint shortage. According to the Institute for Press and Society, six local newspapers have shut down entirely and nearly 30 have been obliged to reduce their sizes or eliminate weekend editions and magazines. Even some of the country's leading newspapers have warned they are weeks away from halting publication.
[font size=1]-snip-[/font]
Strict currency controls that experts say have crippled economy are
preventing publishers from importing newsprint
Virginia López in Caracas
theguardian.com, Wednesday 12 February 2014 15.17 GMT
For the editors of Venezuela's oldest newspaper, going web-only is not a commercial strategy to reflect dwindling circulation figures. El Impulso halved its print edition from four sections to two in October, and on Friday it will be reduced to one, because the regional daily is running out of paper.
A wave of shortages in Venezuela over the past year have left people scrambling to find anything from toilet paper to cooking oil and car parts. The shortages have been blamed on strict currency controls put in place more than a decade ago to prevent the flight of capital. Experts say the controls have crippled the economy and led to inflation reaching 56%, the highest in the world.
[font size=1]-snip-[/font]
But not every newspaper has survived the newsprint shortage. According to the Institute for Press and Society, six local newspapers have shut down entirely and nearly 30 have been obliged to reduce their sizes or eliminate weekend editions and magazines. Even some of the country's leading newspapers have warned they are weeks away from halting publication.
[font size=1]-snip-[/font]
Read more: http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/feb/12/maduro-dissent-venezuela-press-short-of-paper