Roberto Noble
Encyclopedia
Clarín (newspaper)
Clarín is the largest newspaper in Argentina, published by the Grupo Clarín media group. It was founded by Roberto Noble on 28 August 1945. It is politically centrist but popularly understood to oppose the Kirchner government...
, long Argentina's leading newsdaily and the most or second-most circulated in the Spanish-speaking world.
Early career
Born to privilege in the city of La PlataLa Plata
La Plata is the capital city of the Province of Buenos Aires, Argentina, and of La Plata partido. According to the , the city proper has a population of 574,369 and its metropolitan area has 694,253 inhabitants....
, Roberto Noble developed a socialist ideology as an adolescent, having already earned some renown by 1918 agitating for the movement to reform Argentina's university system, whose curriculum had hitherto been largely dictated by conservative Catholic interests. Obtaining a Law Degree at the prestigious National University of La Plata, he joined the Socialist Party of Argentina, and later aligned himself with the dissident Independent Socialists. This party split from the Socialist Party to seek an alliance with conservatives sharing their distaste for the populist Hipólito Yrigoyen
Hipólito Yrigoyen
Juan Hipólito del Sagrado Corazón de Jesús Irigoyen Alem was twice President of Argentina . His activism became the prime impetus behind the obtainment of universal suffrage in Argentina in 1912...
for the 1928 elections
Argentine presidential election, 1928
The Argentine general election of 1928 was held on 1 April. With a turnout of 80.9%, it produced the following official results:-President: a) Parties nominating the Leopoldo Melo-Vicente Gallo ticket...
(which Yrigoyen won).
Noble was a vocal advocate for the overthrow of President Yrigoyen, whose high-handed style of governing put him in a precarious situation following the Wall Street Crash of 1929
Wall Street Crash of 1929
The Wall Street Crash of 1929 , also known as the Great Crash, and the Stock Market Crash of 1929, was the most devastating stock market crash in the history of the United States, taking into consideration the full extent and duration of its fallout...
, an event affecting Argentina's economy as much as the United States'. The regime that deposed the aging Yrigoyen in a quiet, September, 1930, coup gave way to elections the following year, for the new regime organized the "Concordance," a coalition of the National Autonomist Party
National Autonomist Party
The National Autonomist Party was an Argentine political party during the 1874-1916 period. Created on March 15, 1874 by the union of the Autonomist Party of Adolfo Alsina and the National Party of Nicolás Avellaneda...
(the conservative party in power during most of the 1880-1916 era) with centrist Radical Civic Union
Radical Civic Union
The Radical Civic Union is a political party in Argentina. The party's positions on issues range from liberal to social democratic. The UCR is a member of the Socialist International. Founded in 1891 by radical liberals, it is the oldest political party active in Argentina...
figures opposed to Yrigoyen and with amenable Socialists. Having been part of the latter group since 1927, Noble joined the ticket and was elected to Argentina's lower house, the Chamber of Deputies. Representing the city of Buenos Aires
Buenos Aires
Buenos Aires is the capital and largest city of Argentina, and the second-largest metropolitan area in South America, after São Paulo. It is located on the western shore of the estuary of the Río de la Plata, on the southeastern coast of the South American continent...
until 1936, he introduced a number of progressive bills that became law, including needed anti-abuse reforms to rural Argentina's Justice of the Peace
Justice of the Peace
A justice of the peace is a puisne judicial officer elected or appointed by means of a commission to keep the peace. Depending on the jurisdiction, they might dispense summary justice or merely deal with local administrative applications in common law jurisdictions...
system and the landmark Law 11723, the basis for Argentina's Law of Intellectual and Artistic Property.
These accomplishments brought him to the attention of the president of the lower house of Congress, Manuel Fresco, who appointed Noble second vice-president of the body. Elected governor of the Province of Buenos Aires in November, 1935, on the Corcordance ticket through fraud, as many Concordance lawmakers were during the "Infamous Decade
Infamous Decade
The Infamous Decade in Argentina is the name given to the period of time that started in 1930 with the coup d'état against President Hipólito Yrigoyen by José Félix Uriburu...
," Fresco initiated a number of needed housing and highway projects, among other public works. He appointed Noble minister of government, a prominent post which drew ire from Fresco's colleagues within the party. Noble's encouragement of the governor's relatively progressive social policy (particularly land reform
Land reform
[Image:Jakarta farmers protest23.jpg|300px|thumb|right|Farmers protesting for Land Reform in Indonesia]Land reform involves the changing of laws, regulations or customs regarding land ownership. Land reform may consist of a government-initiated or government-backed property redistribution,...
) also convinced many in the Concordance that Fresco had clear presidential ambitions. Forcing Noble to resign his post and Fresco to step aside, the party rigged the 1940 elections in favor of a staunchly reactionary
Reactionary
The term reactionary refers to viewpoints that seek to return to a previous state in a society. The term is meant to describe one end of a political spectrum whose opposite pole is "radical". While it has not been generally considered a term of praise it has been adopted as a self-description by...
candidate, Alberto Barceló.
This disappointment led Noble to renounce direct political involvement in the future. He turned to the promotion of cultural activities and was appointed head of the National Commission for Culture, a body he helped create during his days in the lower house. Seeking an alternative to Buenos Aires's three principal newsdailies, La Nación
La Nación
La Nación is an Argentine daily newspaper. The country's leading conservative paper, the centrist Clarín is its main competitor. It is the only newspaper in Argentina still published in broadsheet format.-Overview:...
, La Prensa and La Razón
La Razón
La Razón is used as a name for newspapers in the Spanish-speaking world including:*La Razón , Argentina*La Razón , Bolivia*La Razón , Ecuador*La Razón , Peru...
(all of a decidedly conservative bent), Noble sold and the bulk of his estate (including his prized pampas ranch) for US$1.6 million and, printing an initial distribution of 60,000 copies, he inaugurated Clarín (the "Clarion") on Tuesday, August 28, 1945.
Clarín
"A touch of Argentine attention to Argentine problems," as he billed Clarín, the daily stood out in newsstands for its innovative front page format and sold out on its first day in Buenos Aires newsstands. Sporting large headlines with relatively abbreviated introductory text below each and copious illustrations, the front page served primarily as a table of contents inviting the reader to look inside for more. The iconic title, moreover, was placed to accommodate the layout and could be found anywhere on the top half of the paper's smaller, more manageable front page, giving the daily a whimsical touch. This design, a novelty in 1945, later influenced newspaper front pages around the World. First seen among British tabloids, the format has been adopted by news dailies such as USA TodayUSA Today
USA Today is a national American daily newspaper published by the Gannett Company. It was founded by Al Neuharth. The newspaper vies with The Wall Street Journal for the position of having the widest circulation of any newspaper in the United States, something it previously held since 2003...
and The Guardian
The Guardian
The Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format...
, as well as helping make many others more "reader-friendly."
Juan Perón
Juan Domingo Perón was an Argentine military officer, and politician. Perón was three times elected as President of Argentina though he only managed to serve one full term, after serving in several government positions, including the Secretary of Labor and the Vice Presidency...
, whose opposition Democratic Union
Argentine general election, 1946
The Argentine general election of 1946, the last for which only men were enfranchised, was held on 24 February. Voters chose both the President and their legislators and with a turnout of 83.4%, it produced the following results:-President:aAbstentions....
he had endorsed; where La Nación and La Prensa accused Perón (and, particularly, the first lady, Eva Perón
Eva Perón
María Eva Duarte de Perón was the second wife of President Juan Perón and served as the First Lady of Argentina from 1946 until her death in 1952. She is often referred to as simply Eva Perón, or by the affectionate Spanish language diminutive Evita.She was born in the village of Los Toldos in...
, whom La Prensa only referred to as "the wife of the president") personally of the day's problems, however, Clarín focused on issues of social and economic development (particularly Argentina's budding industrialization, a concern it shared with the Perón administration), offering articles rich in facts, figures and anecdotes with limited editorials. It also benefited from Perón's hostility towards some competing magazines and dailies, particularly La Prensa, which Perón expropriated in April, 1951 (on the eve of his reelection campaign
Argentine general election, 1951
The Argentine general election of 1951, the first to have enfranchised women at the national level, was held on 11 November. Voters chose both the President and their legislators and with a turnout of 88.0%, it produced the following results:-President:...
).
The tireless Noble met Ernestina Herrera
Ernestina Herrera de Noble
Ernestina Herrera de Noble is a prominent Argentine publisher and executive. She is the largest shareholder of the Grupo Clarín media conglomerate and director of the flagship Clarín newspaper.-Life and times:...
while on one of his rare vacations, in 1950. He and the 25-year old Flamenco
Flamenco
Flamenco is a genre of music and dance which has its foundation in Andalusian music and dance and in whose evolution Andalusian Gypsies played an important part....
dancer, who had little in common, soon developed a relationship. The confirmed bachelor, however, also enjoyed a relationship with Guadalupe Zapata, a Chile
Chile
Chile ,officially the Republic of Chile , is a country in South America occupying a long, narrow coastal strip between the Andes mountains to the east and the Pacific Ocean to the west. It borders Peru to the north, Bolivia to the northeast, Argentina to the east, and the Drake Passage in the far...
an divorcée, whom he married in 1958 (the couple had a girl, Guadalupe, in 1959). The matrimony was an unhappy one, however, leading to their separation a few years later.
Earning renown worldwide as both a businessman and journalist, he was awarded the Grand Cross of the Order of Malta in 1951 and Columbia University
Columbia University
Columbia University in the City of New York is a private, Ivy League university in Manhattan, New York City. Columbia is the oldest institution of higher learning in the state of New York, the fifth oldest in the United States, and one of the country's nine Colonial Colleges founded before the...
's prestigious Maria Moors Cabot prize
Maria Moors Cabot prize
The Maria Moors Cabot Prizes are the oldest international awards in the field of journalism. They pick what the Trustees of Columbia University see as journalistic contributions to inter-American understanding.-Award:...
in 1955. Noble, a supporter of developmentalism
Developmentalism
Developmentalism is an economic theory which states that the best way for Third World countries to develop is through fostering a strong and varied internal market and to impose high tariffs on imported goods....
, endorsed Arturo Frondizi
Arturo Frondizi
Arturo Frondizi Ercoli was the President of Argentina between May 1, 1958, and March 29, 1962, for the Intransigent Radical Civic Union.-Early life:Frondizi was born in Paso de los Libres, Corrientes Province...
who, during his 1958-62 presidency promulgated the Law of Foreign Investment and other incentives which, together, resulted in sharp increases in energy and industrial production (leading to the elimination of Argentina's stubborn trade deficits of the 1950s). Claríns support of these measures helped lead to its widespread preference by the Argentine middle class (Latin America's largest, proportionately) and, by 1965, Clarín enjoyed the largest circulation in Argentina, a trend reinforced by innovations such as weekly color supplements and thematic inserts (firsts in the Argentine newspaper industry).
Noble resisted the drive towards unionization being felt across Argentina's vast publishing industry during the 1960s, a development primarily a result of publishing workers' union leader Raimundo Ongaro
Raimundo Ongaro
Raimundo Ongaro is a prominent Argentine labor leader.-Early career and rise to prominence:Raimundo José Ongaro was born to a middle-class family of Italian Argentines from the Lombardy region, in the Argentine seashore city of Mar del Plata in 1924...
, whose Socialist ideology put him at odds with the paramount CGT
General Confederation of Labour (Argentina)
The General Confederation of Labour of the Argentine Republic is a national trade union centre of Argentina founded on September 27, 1930, as the result of the merge of the USA and the COA trade union centres...
union. Interviewed at the time regarding his career, Noble described his own early Socialist affiliations as a "youthful indiscretion." Attempts on the part of Clarín employees to organize were met with swift dismissals, a measure facilitated by Argentina's return to military dictatorship in 1966. Noble had, however, not supported the 1966 coup against the moderate Arturo Illia. Close to President Illia's War Secretary, Gen. Ignácio Ávalos, he supported Ávalos' efforts to persuade Illia to remove the Head of the Armed Forces Joint Chiefs, Juan Carlos Onganía
Juan Carlos Onganía
Juan Carlos Onganía Carballo was de facto president of Argentina from 29 June 1966 to 8 June 1970. He rose to power as military dictator after toppling, in a coup d’état self-named Revolución Argentina , the democratically elected president Arturo Illia .-Economic and social...
, whom Ávalos suspected of plotting a coup despite the wily Onganía's protestations of loyalty.
His health declining, he established the Noble Foundation in 1966 for charitable purposes and married his longtime companion, Ernestina Herrera in 1967. Roberto Noble died in Buenos Aires two years later, at age 66, and was interred at La Recoleta Cemetery
La Recoleta Cemetery
La Recoleta Cemetery is a famous cemetery located in the exclusive Recoleta neighbourhood of Buenos Aires, Argentina. It contains the graves of notable people, including Eva Perón, Raúl Alfonsín, and several presidents of Argentina.- History :...
.