FrontpageoftheCorreiodaManhãnewspaperonthedayofthecoup

April 1, 1964

Nayara Henriques

Correio da Manhã was, as the name indicates, a morning newspaper. The presses ran through the early hours of the morning, ensuring that the papers were on the newsstands and in readers' hands early on. Between March 31 and April 2, 1964, the closing of the editions involved fact-checking down to the very last second before sending them off to print. The anticipation was not only for the news, but also for the editorials with their opinions on the country's latest events.

On Tuesday, March 31, the Correio da Manhã asked: "To what extent will the president of the Republic abuse the patience of the Nation?" And the following day it answered: "The capacity to tolerate him any longer has reached its final limit." In the wake of Brazil's political events, especially the dissatisfaction with the government of João Goulart and the first moments of the coup d'état, the newspapers took sides -- most of them siding with the military. Counting on their influence over public opinion, the press helped promote the idea that Brazil was undergoing a "revolution" and that it was now -- finally -- free from "complete disorder and complete anarchy in the administrative and financial sphere," as the Correio da Manhã put it on April 1st. Between the lines lay the plan devised by civilians and military officers to destabilize João Goulart's government, using legal maneuvers to depose the president and turning the press to their advantage.

Public opinion, of course, would be directly influenced by newspapers and their editorials. The Correio da Manhã's discourse seemed consistent: the legality of the Jango government had been defended in 1961, but now the president had overstepped his constitutional power, and his removal was more than justified. Therefore, the only solution to defend democracy, the editorials said, would be to attack its greatest threat and remove him from power. Thus, the newspapers called into question the governability and popularity of João Goulart.

On April 2nd, the newspaper announced the “Vitória” in its editorial: “O Correio da Manhã unfurled the banner of legality and the defense of institutions. And it emerged victorious.” It was also the victory “of democracy and the Brazilian nation.” But defeat was not long in coming: in the following days, the political purges began, along with the arrests, and the first suspension of elections was announced.

Image description: The image shows the front page of the newspaper "Correio da Manhã" dated April 1, 1964. The layout is linear, with the newspaper's title at the top, followed by a large central photo and several texts arranged below. On the left, there is a highlighted text with the name "Magalhães Pinto," and on the right, another text with the name "CGT." The background is black and white, with red and blue text standing out.