By Maira Magro
The Electoral Court in Mato Grosso state issued an injunction against the state’s largest media company, Gazeta, preventing it from publishing stories that say acting Federal Deputy and current Senate candidate Carlos Abicalil (PT) supports decriminalizing abortion, A Gazeta and Folha de S. Paulo report. The ruling would fine the paper A Gazeta and the TV station Canal 10 more than $58,000 if they fail to comply.
Abicalil complained to the Electoral Court that reports that he signed a letter in support of an abortion decriminalization bill treated him unjustly. According to Diário de Cuiabá, the stories were exploited by the opposition. The candidate has since stated that he opposes abortion and said that tying his name to the issue could harm him in the election. The National Newspaper Association condemned the court-ordered censorship, A Gazeta adds.
Note from the editor: This story was originally published by the Knight Center’s blog Journalism in the Americas, the predecessor of LatAm Journalism Review.
