Controversy over À Punt's internal plan to prioritize Spanish
The guide asks that place names in Catalan not be used, among other things.
BarcelonanThe intention of the new general director of À Punt, Francisco Aura, to prioritize Spanish over Catalan in broadcasts on Valencian public television has generated controversy. Compromís MP Maria Josep Amigó has made public through X various details of Aura's internal report that indicate the intention to marginalize Catalan. "Objective: impoverish the language. They're not hiding anything," says the Valencian leader in the publication. Aura was appointed at the end of January of that year.
The document from the director of À Punt indicates that one of the channel's objectives is to "increase the audience in Spanish" for its news programs. To be "more sensitive to the Spanish-speaking population," several things are proposed: "lowering the normative tone and style of the Valencian language," using place names in Spanish, such as Torrevieja instead of Torrevieja, and having journalists ask in Spanish if the person they are addressing is a Spanish speaker.
Another point in the document indicates that one way to increase the network's overall audience is to increase the presence of Spanish. Therefore, it proposes broadcasting more fiction, both series and films, in Spanish and producing programs with titles in Spanish. Amigó expressed outrage at Aura's plan: "They have it crystal clear (it's in capital letters and bold)."
The new president of À Punt took office amid criticism from the opposition. A journalist and former director of Trece, he was also manager of the anti-Catalan Valencia TeVe and was linked to the former Canal 9—the previous name of the Valencian public broadcaster—where he served as head of program production and as a producer of news and programs. In addition to Aura, Vicente Ordaz, former head of news at Cope in Valencia, was also appointed president of À Punt's board of directors in January. The journalist is particularly opposed to the use of Catalan and, during his time as a panelist on Valencian television, has always spoken in Spanish.
