History of the Catalan press (1966), by Joan Torrent and Rafael Tasis. Censure and publicity

Abstract

Widely regarded as one of the most authoritative sources on the historiography of Catalan journalism, the History of the Catalan Press (Història de la premsa catalana, 1966) by Joan Torrent and Rafael Tasis had to pass through the hands of Franco’s censors before it was published. This article closely analyses the publication’s setbacks as it went through the various stages of censorship and looks at the alterations made to the final published editions. It also provides data on the publication’s press coverage at the time. Censorship records held at the General Archive in Alcalá de Henares reveal the political criteria used to determine what was censored. The records also show that the Francoist authorities were worried about the parallels that might be drawn from the historical course taken by Catalan journalism, especially its ties with pro-independence political movements.

Keywords:  History of the press, Catalan journalism, editorial censorship, Franco’s dictatorship, Catalan nationalism.