Taibo II slams media report on bookstore closures as 'right-wing lies'

Paco Ignacio Taibo II, director of the Fondo de Cultura Económica (FCE), launched a strong attack against what he termed "right-wing newspapers," specifically targeting a report by EL UNIVERSAL on the dwindling number of Educal bookstores. "Damn right-wing newspapers, stop it or you'll receive a denial for every slap," he declared, accusing the media of lying with malice and lacking journalistic rigor and ethics.

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Damn right-wing newspapers, stop it or you'll receive a denial for every slap.

Taibo II's remarks came in response to a report detailing the significant reduction of Educal's bookstore presence, from 70 locations to just 19. The article noted that some branches, like the one on Reforma 175, have closed, while others, such as the Zócalo-Pino Suárez location, are liquidating inventory. Taibo II, however, insisted that the majority of Educal's bookstores, around 68 or 69, would be recovered and integrated into the FCE. He explained that the closure of a few branches was due to cost-saving measures, particularly when multiple locations existed in the same city.

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Private television is disgusting and private press is even more disgusting.

He attributed the situation to an "economic crisis" that had pushed Educal into "terminal crisis," making it unable to pay its staff. The fusion with FCE, he stated, would restructure the operation, ensuring that the existing bookstores and their 265 employees would be retained under the FCE umbrella. However, a confidential source, identified as María in the original report, contradicted this, stating that several employees had been dismissed, and others were pressured to resign their seniority to transfer to FCE employment.

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The real fact is that there is a process of fusion of Educal bookstores into the Fund.

Andrés Ruiz, an institutional liaison for the FCE, echoed Taibo II's sentiments, criticizing private television and press for their reporting. He specifically mentioned the closure of the Reforma 175 bookstore, attributing it to the federal government's Secretariat of Culture terminating the lease on the building. Taibo II emphasized that the goal was not to lose bookstores but to consolidate and restructure them under the FCE to ensure their survival.

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The building was rented to the Federal Secretariat of Culture, they canceled the lease and the bookstore had to be removed.