TheÚltimaHoranewspaper'seditorialofficeisvandalized

April 1, 1964

Lucas Garabini

The newspaper

Última Hora

, from Russian-Brazilian Samuel Wainer, was created in 1951 as a media outlet sponsored by the Vargas government, especially to secure loans from Banco do Brasil, eventually reaching eleven local editions at a time when publications were restricted to circulating only in their city of origin. It was, without a doubt, a communications empire.

The relationship between the press and power has always existed, camouflaged. Wainer, however, did not resort to a veiled strategy and came clean right away: a newspaper has a side, and

Última Hora

was a Getulista newspaper. Its first edition came out with an editorial signed by Getúlio.

A little more than a decade later, Samuel Wainer's newspaper was the only major publication to support President João Goulart and his Basic Reforms, which sent chills through the conservative population, terrified by the threat of a communist turn by the government.

At the Central do Brasil Rally

,

Jango declared the nationalization of foreign oil companies and the expropriation of underused lands

along the banks of railways and highways. The speech sounded too radical and planted seeds in ground already prepared for the military coup.

Right on the first morning of April, the day after the coup movements began, the population opposed to the government took to the streets of Rio de Janeiro, egged on by the governor of Guanabara, Carlos Lacerda, an opponent of Jango and Wainer's staunch adversary.

In the wake of the widespread outrage, one of the targets was the headquarters of the

Última Hora

, damaged and set on fire. There was no way to get that day's edition out onto the streets. But the next day's did come out, thanks to an enormous effort by the contributors to

depicting the violence that ushered in the "years of lead."

Image description: The image is a black-and-white newspaper page. At the top, the headline "JANGO NO RIO GRANDE E MAZZILLI EMPOSSADO" stands out. Below, there is a subheadline "ULTIMA HORA DEPREDADA E INCENDIADA" with the word "EXTRA" highlighted. On the right, there is a column of text with the title "JANGO DISPENSA SACRIFÍCIO DOS GAÚCHOS". The center of the page shows a photograph of a destroyed newsroom, with debris and equipment scattered about. Below, there are two additional photos, one showing damaged reporting equipment and another with people standing inside a room. The date "3 de Abril de 1964" appears in the bottom right corner.