''Granma'' is the official newspaper of the

Central Committee of the Communist Party of Cuba The Central Committee of the Communist Party of Cuba (PCC) is the highest organ between two congresses. History The Central Committee was established on 3 October 1965 when the United Party of the Cuban Socialist Revolution was transformed int ...

. It was formed in 1965 by the merger of two previous papers, (from

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many countries in the Americas **Spanish cuisine **Spanish history **Spanish culture ...

: "Revolution") and ("Today"). Publication of the newspaper began in February 1966. Its name comes from the

yacht A yacht () is a sail- or marine propulsion, motor-propelled watercraft made for pleasure, cruising, or racing. There is no standard definition, though the term generally applies to vessels with a cabin intended for overnight use. To be termed a ...

'' Granma'' that carried

Fidel Castro Fidel Alejandro Castro Ruz (13 August 1926 – 25 November 2016) was a Cuban politician and revolutionary who was the leader of Cuba from 1959 to 2008, serving as the prime minister of Cuba from 1959 to 1976 and President of Cuba, president ...

and 81 other rebels to Cuba's shores in 1956, launching the

Cuban Revolution The Cuban Revolution () was the military and political movement that overthrew the dictatorship of Fulgencio Batista, who had ruled Cuba from 1952 to 1959. The revolution began after the 1952 Cuban coup d'état, in which Batista overthrew ...

. The newspaper has been a way for the Cuban Communist Party to communicate their ideology to the world, especially regarding the United States.

Marta Rojas Marta Rojas (May 17, 1928 – October 3, 2021) was a Cuban journalist, historian, historical fiction writer, and revolutionary heroine. A witness to the 26 July 1953 assault on the Moncada Barracks, she reported on the subject of censorship to ''Re ...

worked for the paper since its founding.

Editions

The newspaper is published daily and is the most widely read newspaper in Cuba. In 1997, the circulation of the newspaper was estimated to be approximately 675,000. Several weekly international editions, available in

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and

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, are also distributed abroad. Apart from Cuba, ''Granma'' is also printed in Argentina, Brazil, and Canada. Also, news stories from ''Granma'' are often carried later in the Spanish-language sections of periodicals with a similar political base, such as ''

People's Weekly World ''People's World'', official successor to the ''Daily Worker'', is a Marxism–Leninism, Marxist-Leninist and American Left, American leftist national daily online news publication. Founded by activists, socialists, communists, and those active i ...

''. The normal edition is published six days a week (not Sundays) and runs to eight pages plus occasional supplements.

Digital Format

The first website for ''Granma'' was created in August 1996, making ''Granma'' the first media organization in Cuba to have a website. The ''Granma'' daily news was first published on a separate website in July 1997, and the two sites were later merged. The website includes versions of the newspaper in five languages other than Spanish, and updates all of these versions daily.

Content

''Granma'' regularly features: * Speeches by

Raúl Castro Raúl Modesto Castro Ruz ( ; ; born 3 June 1931) is a Cuban retired politician and general who served as the First Secretary of the Communist Party of Cuba, first secretary of the Communist Party of Cuba, the most senior position in the One-par ...

and other leaders of the Cuban government, including former President

's column, 'Reflexiones de Fidel' meaning 'Fidel's Reflections'. * Official announcements of the Cuban government * Popular sketches highlighting the history of Cuba's revolutionary struggle, from the 19th to the 21st century * Developments in

Latin America Latin America is the cultural region of the Americas where Romance languages are predominantly spoken, primarily Spanish language, Spanish and Portuguese language, Portuguese. Latin America is defined according to cultural identity, not geogr ...

and world politics * Steps by Cuba's workers and farmers to defend and advance the socialist revolution * Developments in industry, agriculture, science, the arts, and sports in Cuba today * TV listings for that day * Cuban social, cultural, and political events, such as parades and festivals The Newspaper has tended to focus on events occurring in and around Havana. In regards to political events, it has tended to focus on events supportive of the party and government, while excluding events that do not support these institutions.

''Cartas a la Dirección''

The ''Cartas a la Dirección'' section of ''Granma'' contains letters from readers, as well as responses from the editor. It was first included in the newspaper on March 14, 2008, soon after Raúl Castro's speech stating that the Cuban Communist Party is open to criticism. The section has since then become very popular. The letters in this section can involve multiple topics, including complaints and suggestions for the newspaper or the Cuban Communist Party. Publication of letters to the editor of ''Granma'' serve a few functions. First, the publication of the letters acts as a platform in which the Cuban public can directly interact with the editor of the newspaper, as well as with the communist party as a whole. It also serves as a method for the party and the government to stay accountable to the public. Finally, the letters help inform Cuban leadership of matters concerning the people. Initially, very few of the letters published in ''Cartas a la Dirección'' received responses, and these responses were often vague and unhelpful. However, ''Granma'', through editorial comments added onto letters and responses, as well as a periodic overview of responses, attempted to pressure government agencies into improving the quality and frequency of their responses. The strategy worked, with 77 percent of letters receiving responses in 2016, improved from only 8.8 percent in 2011. The section ''Cartas a la Dirección'' is not the first time ''Granma'' has included letters from readers in the newspaper, but most of these sections were more focused on a certain topic, such as economic statistics or transportation and infrastructure. An exception was ''A vuelta de correo'', which began in 1975 and continued until 1984. Like ''Cartas a la Dirección'', ''A vuelta de correo'' included questions from the Cuban public that brought attention to various issues, as well as occasional responses by the government. However, these letters were much less specific than those found in ''Cartas a la Dirección'', and were frequently redacted.

Editors

* 1965-1967 Isidoro Malmierca * 1967-1987 Jorge Enrique Mendoza * 1987-1990 Enrique Román * 1990-1995 Jacinto Granda * 1995-2005 Frank Agüero * 2005-2013 Lázaro Barredo * 2013–present Pelayo Terry In 2012, Mairelys Cuevas Gómez, the editor-in-chief of ''Granma'', fled to Miami after seeking asylum in the US.

Editions

Digital Format

Content

''Cartas a la Dirección''

Editors

References

External links