Solon Brochado: President Lula is a man of few words, at least in regards to the press. He spent almost all of his first year as president without giving interviews, whether exclusive or not. On the other hand, if released from having to answer reporters’ questions, he can be a very eloquent man: the president adresses the population on a daily basis, through pronunciations at innaugurations, festivals, rallies and such.
So it was with much anticipation that every one turned their attention to the show Roda Viva, at TV Cultura (the public TV network), this monday. It would be the president’s first interview after the beggining of the whole political crisis, way back when an aide to then chief-of-staff José Dirceu was charged with negotiating public tenders with bicheiros [those involved with the jogo do bicho - or “animal game”, an illegal form of lottery], in exchange of bribes and contribution to electoral campaigns, which eventually led to the CPI [Parliamentary Inquiry Comission] dos Bingos.
Roda Viva is a one hour long live interview show, where about 15 reporters and pundits from different backgrounds sit on two round benches, surrounding the interviewee, who sits on a rotating chair. Questions tend to come in waves, which is usually bad news for someone trying to make some story up on the fly, since they’ll most often than not be caught in contradiction. Being literally surrounded with people asking questions, above you, also doesn’t seem to help those interviewed.
It seemed unusual then that the president, so wary of journalists and interviews, would decide to break his silence at such an inhospitable environment. But it turned out things were not so inhospitable after all. First, the president wasn’t interviewed in the usual set, but at the Palácio do Planalto [the federal government’s office]. He didn’t have to sit in an uncomfortable rotating chair, surrounded by journalists, but rather could feel like he was heading a reunion with supporters. Also, there were less interviewers, and they all seemed a little intimidated by the situation, or at least were less agressive than usual.
So, the next couple of posts will be translations of two articles, written by Guilherme Fiuza and Villas-Bôas Corrêa, both from NoMínimo, discussing how the interview went. I’ll also try to post some of the interview’s repercussion in political blogs, like Ricardo Noblat’s and even [Roda Viva’s director and host] Paulo Markun’s.
