INDEPENDENT STABROEK NEWS FOLDS AFTER DECADES OF POLITICAL AND ECONOMIC PRESSURE

What this source establishes

The earliest of the Stabroek News closure reports in this manifest, dated 13 February, framing the closure as the product of political as well as economic pressure. It confirms the print cessation date of 15 March 2026 and the voluntary liquidation. It corroborates both state-pressure allegations: withheld state-company advertising described by de Caires as 'a rather crude attempt to muzzle the free press', and a DPI debt exceeding $80 million over the past year alone. It also corroborates the repeated refusal of a radio licence and the 'significant privileges' said to be enjoyed by local competitors.

Key claims

• Stabroek News announced it will close permanently, with printing ceasing on March 15, 2026, and the company entering voluntary liquidation.
• The announcement, made by Chairman Brendan de Caires, marks the end of a 39-year run; de Caires described the decision as 'extraordinarily difficult and painful'.
• De Caires recalled a period when advertisements from state-owned companies were withheld, describing it as 'a rather crude attempt to muzzle the free press'; state advertising constituted a substantial portion of the company's earnings.
• The state-run Department of Public Information has accrued a debt to the newspaper exceeding $80 million in unpaid advertisements over the past year alone.
• De Caires said: 'The debt persists despite repeated private and public entreaties to clear it... This tactic could equally be construed as an attempt to starve this company of its operating funds.'
• The outlet repeatedly sought a radio licence and was consistently refused; although it operated a television subsidiary for several decades, its main local competitors enjoyed 'significant privileges'.
• De Caires said: 'The anticipated progression from newspaper to multi-media broadcaster has been impossible.'
• The family said: 'For 40 years, Stabroek News beat the odds, economic, political, and cultural—every single day.'
• Founded in 1986 by attorney David de Caires and his wife Doreen; became a daily in 1994; David de Caires died in 2008 and Doreen subsequently assumed a less active role.

Quotations

• “a rather crude attempt to muzzle the free press”— Brendan de Caires, Chairman, on the withholding of state-owned company advertisements
• “The debt persists despite repeated private and public entreaties to clear it... This tactic could equally be construed as an attempt to starve this company of its operating funds.”— Brendan de Caires, Chairman
• “The anticipated progression from newspaper to multi-media broadcaster has been impossible”— Brendan de Caires, Chairman
• “For 40 years, Stabroek News beat the odds, economic, political, and cultural—every single day.”— the de Caires family

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