Trump takes off the radio that was the target of the Castro brothers in Cuba 40 years ago
Headquartered in Miami, Radio Martí was founded in the 1980s by Ronald Reagan. The construction of the broadcaster was a request from the then exiled Cuban-American leader Jorge but Canosa. The project aimed to enter the island that was rigidly controlled by the government. Currently, the station worked by broadcasting news about Cuba bringing counterpoints to state providers.
Broadcaster suffered criticism for being a “outdated relic of the Cold War,” according to the New York Times. “A swollen waste where politically influential people found jobs for their relatives,” the newspaper added. The radio also suffered from journalistic and corruption scandals that were reported by Congress, according to the report.
However, the radio won eight Emmy Awards. “Cuba is experiencing its worst crisis and, in the midst of this crisis, this information blackout fiasco only benefits the regime,” said Mario J. Pentón, a Cuban journalist who worked on the radio.
Team knew the closure of activities by email. According to the New York Times, journalists were in the midst of an interview when the news arrived. Ramón Saul Sánchez, an activist known for leading protests to Cuba, had the profile canceled. “They were very confused. They said, ‘We thought we were fired. We need to leave,’ he said about the situation.
Radio was blocked in Cuba. The TV station even earned the nickname “No See TV” (I don’t see TV, free translation) due to the island block. Abel Fernández, the channel’s digital and social media director, lost his job last week and said all the station’s content was blocked. “But people are achieving content on social media (which are still active). What we are doing is important and matters to people,” he told New York Times. Before closing, audience rates only increased.
