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El Telegrama del Rif

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El Telegrama del Rif
TypeDaily newspaper
Founder(s)Cándido Lobera Girela
Founded1 March 1902
LanguageSpanish
Ceased publication29 May 2015
HeadquartersMelilla
CountrySpain
ISSN2386-494X

El Telegrama del Rif (Spanish: [el telegɾa'ma ðel rif], 'The Rif Telegram')—renamed El Telegrama de Melilla[1] from 1963— is the name of a daily newspaper based in Melilla. It was founded after the Spanish–American War in 1898, when Spain began to wish for a greater military and economic influence in the Rif.

History

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It was founded on March 1, 1902[2] by the artillery captain and journalist Cándido Lobera Girela,[3] originally with the name El Telegrama, though it was soon changed to El Telegrama del Rif.[4] It had the subtitle 'Diario ageno á [sic] la política, defensor de los intereses de España en Marruecos' , meaning 'Apolitical journal, protector of the interests of Spain in Morocco.'[5] In the beginning, El Telegrama del Rif kept a conservative and militarist style,[6] defending Spanish intervention in Morocco.[2][7]

The start of the newspaper roughly coincides with Spanish military campaigns against the Riffians who opposed the extension of Spanish colonial influence in the zone. Because of this, the content of the newspaper was especially focused on news related to the avatars of the war and local information. Its content is therefore an important source of knowledge about this period, as well as the later Spanish protectorate in Morocco.

El Telegrama del Rif had among its collaborators notable figures such as the Moroccan military leader Abd el-Krim[8] —who was editor of the newspaper’s Arabic section—,[9][10] the military doctor Cándido Jurado — who in 1919 wrote popular science articles about the lethargic encephalitis epidemic that was devastating the city of Melilla and the Rif— and the writer Ramón J. Sender — who contributed to the newspaper during his time in Melilla,[11] where he was doing his military service. During World War I, Abd el-Krim turned his section into a fierce vehicle of anti-French rhetoric, until 1917, when French protests led to its suppression.[12]

After the outbreak of the Spanish Civil War and the establishment of Franco’s dictatorship, the newspaper came under the control of the Nationalists. In 1957[13] fit was acquired by the State and became part of the Francoist press network (Cadena de Prensa del Movimiento).[1][14] During the Francoist period, it was one of the newspapers in the network whose staff — despite its small size — had some of the best salaries.[15] In 1963, a few years after the independence of Morocco, the newspaper adopted the name El Telegrama de Melilla.[16] After Franco’s death, the newspaper was incorporated into the state media agency, Medios de Comunicación Social del Estado (MCSE). Its poor economic situation led to its closure one May 17, 1984, coinciding with the dissolution of the MCSE.[1][17] According to some historians, the closure was decided in part due to fears that Morocco might acquire the newspaper and use it as a propaganda outlet.[15]

From 1992,[15] it was published again, in both print and digital editions, until May 29, 2015, when it closed again due to financial problems.[18]

Editorial office

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Editorial Office of the newspaper.

Since its founding, the newspaper's headquarters and printing press were located in buildings on Miguel Acosta Street in Melilla la Vieja, until they were moved to the Ensanche of Melilla — first to a building on Santa Bárbara Street, and by December 1912, the first issue was published from its permanent headquarters, a Modernist building designed specifically for this purpose by architect Enrique Nieto, located on Ejército Español Street. Today, this building is known as the Editorial Office of El Telegrama del Rif.[19][20]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b c Álvarez Timoteo, Jesús (1989). Historia de los medios de comunicación en España: periodismo, imagen y publicidad, 1900-1990 [History of the Media in Spain: Journalism, Image and Advertising, 1900–1990] (in Spanish). Ariel.
  2. ^ a b Ara Torralba, Juan Carlos; Gil Encabo, Fermín (1997). El lugar de Sender: Actas del I Congreso sobre Ramón J. Sender – Huesca, 3–7 de abril de 1995 [The Place of Sender: Proceedings of the 1st Congress on Ramón J. Sender – Huesca, 3–7 April 1995] (in Spanish). Instituto de Estudios Altoaragoneses.
  3. ^ de Bunes Ibarra, Miguel Ángel (2006). El orientalismo desde el Sur [Orientalism from the South] (in Spanish). Barcelona: Anthropos.
  4. ^ Cardona, Gabriel (2010). Alfonso XIII, el rey de espadas [Alfonso XIII, the King of Swords] (in Spanish). Barcelona: Planeta.
  5. ^ Aróstegui, Julio (1988). Historia y memoria de la Guerra Civil: Encuentro en Castilla y León – Salamanca, 24–27 de septiembre de 1986 [History and Memory of the Civil War: Meeting in Castilla y León – Salamanca, 24–27 September 1986] (in Spanish). Junta de Castilla y León.
  6. ^ Checa Godoy, Antonio (1989). Prensa y partidos políticos durante la II República [Press and Political Parties during the Second Republic] (in Spanish). Universidad de Salamanca. ISBN 9788474815214.
  7. ^ Gallego Aranda, Salvador; Marques Leiva, Rosa María (2014). "Cándido Lobera Girela (1871-1932) Militar, periodista, político y escritor" [Cándido Lobera Girela (1871–1932): Soldier, Journalist, Politician and Writer]. Atrio (in Spanish). ISBN 978-84-15275-46-6. Retrieved 11 May 2025 – via digibug.
  8. ^ Rein, Raanan (2007) [1999]. Spain and the Mediterranean since 1898. Routledge.
  9. ^ Romero Salvadó, Francisco J. (2016) [2008]. The Foundations of Civil War: Revolution, Social Conflict and Reaction. Routledge.
  10. ^ Ilahiane, Hsain (2017). Historical Dictionary of the Berbers (Imazighen). Rowman & Littlefield. ISBN 9781442281813.
  11. ^ López García, Bernabé; Hernando de Larramendi, Miguel (2007). Historia y memoria de las relaciones hispano-marroquíes [History and Memory of Hispano-Moroccan Relations] (in Spanish). Ediciones del Oriente y del Mediterráneo.
  12. ^ Payne, Stanley G. (1967). Politics and the Military in Modern Spain. Stanford University Press.
  13. ^ Montabes Pereira, Juan (1989). La prensa del Estado durante la transición política española [The State Press during the Spanish Political Transition]. Madrid: CSIC.
  14. ^ Sevillano Calero, Francisco (1998). Propaganda y medios de comunicación en el franquismo (1936–1951) [Propaganda and Media in Francoism (1936–1951)]. Universidad de Alicante.
  15. ^ a b c Sánchez Rada, Juan (1996). Prensa, del movimiento al socialismo: 60 años de dirigismo informático [Press, from the Movement to Socialism: 60 Years of Information Directives] (in Spanish). Fragua.
  16. ^ "África. Revista de tropas coloniales" [Africa: Journal of Colonial Troops]. Instituto de Estudios Africanos. 20: 80. 1963.
  17. ^ Greciet, Esteban (1998). Censura tras la censura: Crónica personal de la transición periodística [Censorship behind Censorship: A Personal Chronicle of the Journalistic Transition]. Fragua.
  18. ^ ""El Telegrama de Melilla" deja de editarse debido a problemas económicos" [“El Telegrama de Melilla” ceases publication due to financial problems]. La Vanguardia (in Spanish). 29 May 2015. Retrieved 11 May 2025.
  19. ^ Gallego Aranda, Salvador (2010). Enrique Nieto: un paseo por su arquitectura [Enrique Nieto: A Tour of His Architecture]. Melilla: Fundación Melilla Ciudad Monumental-Atrio. pp. 68–71. ISBN 978-84-96101-89-0.
  20. ^ Bravo, Antonio; Nieto (2008). Modernismo y Art Decó en la arquitectura de Melilla [Modernism and Art Deco in the Architecture of Melilla]. Badalona: Ediciones Bellaterra-UNED Melilla. ISBN 978-84-7290-428-6.
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