By Maira Magro
One day after Argentina's president, Cristina Fernández de Kirchner, announced legal proceedings against newspapers Clarín and La Nación for illegally appropriating newsprint company Papel Prensa during the military dictatorship (1976-1983), both newspapers and the government are locked in debate filled with contradicting claims about the purchase of the company back in 1976.
The government released a report saying that the newsprint company was sold under pressure and threats, based on testimony by Lidia Papaleo de Graiver, thw widow of David Graiver, the former owner of Papel Prensa.
However, in a paid insert published Wednesday, Aug. 25, in Clarín and La Nación, Isidoro Graiver, the brother of David Graiver, said the sale was conducted freely, without threats or extortion. He also told Clarín that he never knew about any pressure put on his brother's widow. La Nación added that Papaleo's daughter, María Sol Graiver, denied having any claim on the sale, contrary to what the report suggested.
The government responded that the statements by Isidoro Graiver are a result of a family dispute and that he had nothing to do with the negotiations for the sale of Papel Prensa. Also, his insert in the newspaper was financed by a third party, added the official state news agency Télam. The government responded to the statements by María Sol Gravier, saying she was only two years old at the time of the sale.
Behind this controversy is a history of finger pointing between the government and the largest media groups in the country, especially Clarín. Authorities have accused Clarín of oligopolistic practices, even as Clarín accused the government of wanting to control the press and threatening freedom of expression.
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.
