Miami Reporters Fired For Radio Marti Links Reinstated, Publisher Quits

The President and Publisher of the MIAMI HERALD and EL NUEVO HERALD is resigining, but not before reinstating two reporters and a freelancer who had been fired for doing work for pay at government-run RADIO MARTI and TV MARTI.

JESUS DIAZ JR. anounced the reinstatement order in a letter to readers appearing in TODAY's editions, adding that six other EL NUEVO HERALD employees had been paid by RADIO and TV MARTI in the past five years but that no disciplinary action would be taken and none of the nine employees named may take payment from government-operated broadcasters in the future.  Reporters PABLO ALFONSO and WILFREDO CANCIO ISLA and freelancer OLGA CONNOR were terminated three weeks ago over the MARTI flap, triggering outrage and cancelled subscriptions in the Cuban-American community in MIAMI.

DIAZ, who is being replaced at the MCCLATCHY-owned dailies by GM DAVID LANDSBERG, said that the company's "policies prohibiting such behavior may have been ambiguously communicated, inconsistently applied and widely misunderstood over many years.... It has been determined that in fairness we should extend an amnesty to all involved and enforce our policies more forcefully and consistently in the future."

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