The Political activity of the Oporto Delegation of the National Information Bureau

the relationship with the city’s press and broadcasting

Abstract

The National Bureau of Propaganda, from 1944 on National Information Bureau, was the first of the new organisms created by the New State (Estado Novo), founded as early as September 1933. Created in a time of structuring and consolidation of the new regime, directly dependent on the Presidency of the Council, the Bureau assumed a clearly political role, as a propaganda and information organization. Within the framework of its action, the Bureau mobilized all cultural activities – plastic arts, performing arts, cinema, theater, literature – but also the media, namely press and broadcasting. In March 1945, a Delegation of the Bureau was established in the city of Oporto. However, Oporto was traditionally a city of resistance regarding the authoritarian regime of the New State. This article proposes a first understanding of the action of the Oporto Delegation, about which little is known. In particular, the Delegation's policy in the fields of the press and private broadcasting in Oporto is discussed, and how these actions have connected with the primary function of the Bureau regarding the rhetorical construction of the New State regime.