| Type | Daily newspaper |
|---|---|
| Format | Broadsheet |
| Founded | 1945 |
| Language | English |
| Ceased publication | ? 2007 ? |
| Headquarters | Caracas, Venezuela |
| Circulation | c 30,000 |
| Official website | www.dj.com.ve |
The Daily Journal was an English language newspaper, published in Caracas, Venezuela. It was founded in 1945 by Jules Waldman, and subsequently passed into the hands of Hans Neumann, then Janet Kelly, and was later owned by Russ Dallen, a noted journalist and banker.
It was one of the prominent three English language newspapers in Latin America, the other two being the Buenos Aires Herald and The News in Mexico City. Despite its relatively small circulation (30,000 est.), the Daily Journal had strong influence in Venezuela, because the paper was read by an economically important expatriate community, which included international bankers, oil executives, diplomats. In 2005, the 60-year-old paper went online and launched a Colombian edition. In 2006, the paper planned to expand into Panama and Mexico.
In 1988, The Daily Journal was rocked by a labor dispute. The editor, Nigel Cumberbatch, was fired and replaced by Tony Bianchi, who was seen as more reliable, and many of the staff who were involved in the attempt to unionize the paper were also fired. The remaining staffers were supplemented by a series of new hires of journalists, usually fresh out of college, who were imported from the U.S. and thrown into a complex situation.
By August 1988, the combination of a legal case that had wound its way through the Venezuelan court system, and a secret vote by reporters and editors resulted in The Daily Journal having to hire back the reporters it had fired, and pay damages to others that preferred not to return.
Just as the situation at the paper was calming down, the political, economic and military situation in Venezuela erupted. The Jaime Lusinchi administration was reviled for corruption and sinister methods of silencing critics. With the end of the Iran-Iraq war, the price of oil plummeted to an all-time low, crippling the Venezuelan economy, and sending the national currency (the Bolivar) into a massive short-term devaluation of nearly 1,500% in one year. And the military was revealed to be maintaining "torture barracks" to punish unwilling recruits that tried to escape military service. The Daily Journal's coverage of these crises and of the Carlos Andrés Pérez candidacy began to provoke stern condemnations from both the Venezuelan government and the U.S. State Department.
The pressure on The Daily Journal was exacerbated by its coverage of what has come to be known as the "Massacre of El Amparo",[1][2] Venezuela erupted into nationwide riots and instability. Daily Journal editors were ordered to ignore the evidence against the DISIP and PTJ, and to print government propaganda, and to minimize coverage of the unrest, so as not to affect negotiations on balloon payments on Venezuela's $33 billion in foreign debt.[3]
This all culminated in the Caracazo—a series of protests that erupted into violent street riots and looting. The military reaction to this was ruthless, as the secret police forces (such as the DISIP and Manzopol) fanned out across the country. Some Daily Journal editors and reporters were forced to flee the country to evade reprisals during the political chaos, while others chose to stay and attempt, as best they could, to put out a newspaper.