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''La Prensa'' is a Nicaragua n Newspaper , with offices in the capital Managua . At the time of the Contra war against the administration of the Sandinista National Liberation Front in the 1980s, it supported the goals of overthrowing the government, ending restrictions on speech, and holding new elections.


HISTORY

''La Prensa'' was well known as being hostile to the government during the reign of Anastasio Somoza Debayle . In 1978 , its editor Pedro Chamorro was assassinated, presumably by authorities representing the Somoza government.

However, the paper was also critical of the nascent ruling Junta that succeeded Somoza, especially with the resignation from the junta of Pedro Chamorro's widow, Violeta , in 1980 . Its criticism of Sandinista policies and Daniel Ortega led to periodic crises and various restrictions on press freedom. In one incident a large group of demonstrators gathered around the office and engaged in a conflict with some security guards. The government used this as a pretext to occupy the office and discontinue the paper. Full restrictions on ''La Prensa'' were not lifted until 1987 .

Some authors accuse the paper of serving as a mouthpiece of the CIA for accepting United States funding. Estimates vary as to how much these contributions might have been. As follows are some examples:
  • $100,000: PRODEMCA (Citizen's Committee for the Democratic Forces in Central America) for ''La Prensa''. (''The Central American Fact Book'', Barry & Preusch, Grove Press, 1986 )

  • $170,000: 1987-88 for ''La Prensa'' amidst funding for other anti-Sandinista organizations. ('' San Francisco Chronicle '', October 5 , 1988 )

  • $220,000: 1988 from Congress to NED, in turn through Delphi International to fund ''La Prensa''. (Edgar Chomorro, Institute for Media Analysis, October 25 , 1989 statement, ''"High Intensity Political Intervention Replaces Low Intensity Conflict."'')



REFERENCES



EXTERNAL LINKS

  • http://www.laprensa.com.ni