''El Universal'' is a major
Venezuela
Venezuela (; ), officially the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela ( es, link=no, República Bolivariana de Venezuela), is a country on the northern coast of South America, consisting of a continental landmass and many islands and islets in ...
n newspaper, headquartered in
Caracas
Caracas (, ), officially Santiago de León de Caracas, abbreviated as CCS, is the capital and largest city of Venezuela, and the center of the Metropolitan Region of Caracas (or Greater Caracas). Caracas is located along the Guaire River in the ...
.
[Browning, Mark (2003),]
Venezuela
, ''World Press Encyclopedia'' ''El Universal'' is part of the
Latin American Newspaper Association (Spanish, ''Periodicals Associates Latin-Americans''), an organization of leading newspapers in Latin America. Its main rival is ''
El Nacional.'' The newspaper does not disclose circulation figures.
[
]
History
''El Universal'' was founded in April 1909 in Caracas
Caracas (, ), officially Santiago de León de Caracas, abbreviated as CCS, is the capital and largest city of Venezuela, and the center of the Metropolitan Region of Caracas (or Greater Caracas). Caracas is located along the Guaire River in the ...
by the Venezuelan poet Andrés Mata and his friend Andrés Vigas, being the oldest of current Venezuelan newspapers.[
]
Political stance and editorial opinion
On the morning of 13 April 2002, when the removal of Hugo Chávez
Hugo Rafael Chávez Frías (; 28 July 1954 – 5 March 2013) was a Venezuelan politician who was president of Venezuela from 1999 until his death in 2013, except for a brief period in 2002. Chávez was also leader of the Fifth Repub ...
in what later came to be referred to as the 2002 Venezuelan coup d'état attempt
A failed coup d'état on 11 April 2002 saw the president of Venezuela, Hugo Chávez, ousted from office for 47 hours before being restored to power. Chávez was aided in his return to power by popular support and mobilization against the coup ...
appeared a success, the paper headlined ''¡Un Paso Adelante!'' (One Step Forward!).
The newspaper was described as pro-opposition by ''The Guardian
''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper
A newspaper is a periodical publication containing written information about current events and is often typed in black ink with a white or gray background.
Newspapers can cover a wide ...
'' in 2008, by the BBC in 2013 and by Reuters
Reuters ( ) is a news agency owned by Thomson Reuters Corporation. It employs around 2,500 journalists and 600 photojournalists in about 200 locations worldwide. Reuters is one of the largest news agencies in the world.
The agency was est ...
numerous times between 2011 and 2014.
On 5 July 2014, it was announced that after 105 years of ownership, the Mata family had sold a controlling stake in the newspaper to a Spanish investment firm linked to the Venezuelan government, Politician S.L., a firm that "was created with the purpose of acquiring" ''El Universal''.
/ref> According to the Committee to Protect Journalists
The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) is an American independent non-profit, non-governmental organization, based in New York City, New York, with correspondents around the world. CPJ promotes press freedom and defends the rights of journ ...
(CPJ), ''El Universal'' "cosied up to Venezuela's socialist government" following the purchase. The CPJ wrote that staff complained about censorship by their editors and that there had been firings and resignations at the newspaper.
See also
* List of newspapers in Venezuela
References
External links
*
*
English-language version
*
ICON: International Newspaper Database - ''El Universal'' search results
Publications established in 1909
Spanish-language newspapers
Newspapers published in Venezuela
Mass media in Caracas
Spanish-language websites
{{Venezuela-newspaper-stub