Granma is a newspaper founded in 1965. It publishes a print edition from Monday to Saturday and maintains a regularly updated online portal offering news in English, French, Portuguese, and Italian. Granma is the primary print media outlet in Cuba and has nationwide coverage.
“Granma” was the name of the boat on which Fidel Castro and Che Guevara, along with a group of rebels, traveled from Mexico to Cuba at the end of the 1950s to initiate the revolution.
Media assets
Publishing: Granma
State Media Matrix Typology: State-Controlled (SC)
Ownership and governance
Granma newspaper was established as the official mouthpiece of the Communist Party of Cuba. The Communist Party is entirely responsible for appointing Granma’s management and typically selects its most loyal members to oversee the publication.
Source of funding and budget
There is no public information about Granma’s funding. However, local journalists interviewed for this report in May 2024 said it is common knowledge in Cuba that the newspaper is fully funded by the government (specifically, through the official party).
Editorial independence
Granma is the “official channel of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Cuba,” as defined by the Cuban Constitution, which outlines the Communist Party’s primary role in organizing state affairs.
Granma’s editorial stance is explicitly supportive of the “revolution” and the official party in the Cuban government. The newspaper explicitly states that its main goal is to promote “the work of the revolution and its principles” through its articles and commentaries. According to the newspaper’s own statement, Granma professes its loyalty to the party and openly promotes its policies.
There is no statute that establishes Granma’s editorial independence.
There is no independent assessment mechanism to validate Granma’s editorial independence. The newspaper has a department in charge of handling feedback from readers. It publishes letters from readers with complaints about various authorities every Friday and manages responses from the respective authorities. The section serves as a bridge between readers, the government, and the newspaper. However, this doesn’t qualify as an editorial oversight mechanism.
August 2024