Strict currency controls that experts say have crippled economy are preventing publishers from importing newsprintFor the editors of Venezuela's oldest newspaper, going web-only is not a commercial strategy to reflect dwindling circulation figures. El Impulso halved its print edition from four sections to two in October, and on Friday it will be reduced to one, because the regional daily is running out of paper.A wave of shortages in Venezuela over the past year have left people scrambling to find anything from toilet paper to cooking oil and car parts. The shortages have been blamed on strict currency controls put in place more than a decade ago to prevent the flight of capital. Experts say the controls have crippled the economy and led to inflation reaching 56%, the highest in the world."We have been circulating for 110 years. We will not die for lack of paper. We will come out every day even if we are down to one page", said José Angel Ocanto, editor-in-chief at El Impulso.But not every newspaper has survived the newsprint shortage. According to the Institute for Press and Society, six local newspapers have shut down entirely and nearly 30 have been obliged to reduce their sizes or eliminate weekend editions and magazines. Even some of the country's leading newspapers have warned they are weeks away from halting publication.El Nacional, one of the two largest dailies and a critic of the administration of Nicolás Maduro, said that since May it had not received any... Continue reading at 'The Guardian'
[ The Guardian | 2014-02-12 00:00:00 UTC ]