César Hildebrandt

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César Augusto Hildebrandt Pérez Treviño (Lima, August 7, 1948) is a prominent Peruvian journalist with a polemical career. Since his beginning in journalism in the mid 1970s, he has been considered one of the most influential journalists of Peru, and the Peruvian public has a high opinion of his professional capacity. He is known to stand against government corruption and political ineptitude.

Hildebrandt began his television career at age 32, working in the mass media. His style changed as years went by, although he was able to maintain a younger audience because of his controversial way of thinking in the critical analysis of current political affairs. He has been fired (or forced to resign) from at least 14 political TV shows during his career. In February 2006, after over two years of work on a prime time poltically-themed TV program with a large audience (average: 20 points), the station Frecuencia Latina, unexpectedly terminated his contract despite the fact that it was at the time the most profitable show on Peruvian TV.

Away from television sets, or on them, he has always been sharply critical of the role of the mass media in general. His polemical style, sharp prose and his impeccable uprightness got him a rare mix of love and hatred from many Peruvians.

In October 2006 Hildebrandt was fired from the Op-Ed page of 'La Primera' newspaper in Lima the very day after President Alan Garcia publicly acknowledged that he had fathered a child out of wedlock. Three days earlier, Hildebrandt had broken the story on his column at 'La Primera' divulging that Garcia had a sixth child. This coincidence led to wide speculation on the real reason why he was fired. The publisher denied there was any outside influence from Garcia's government.

He is the brother of the famed Peruvian linguist and Congresswoman Martha Hildebrandt.