Media turbulence
It’s been a turbulent week in the media. Again, the New Arena and coach Scolari were extensively targeted. In part the turbulence is fuel from within, with help from the outside. In the receiving end, a misinformed public which, unfortunately, includes palmeirenses.
In regard to the Arena, biased and outright false “information” was published in leading newspapers, leading to claims that the club would have its hands tied through a catastrophic agreement with WTorre, the construction company. The above was formally repudiated by Palmeiras, WTorre and the media palestrina, in addition to sports journalists with some dignity and commitment to facts.
During the week, media also deemed Scolari’s exit from Palmeiras as eminent, placing him in Sporting of Portugal, then at Fluminense, then at Santos. Unfortunately, rumours like these make the Palmeiras supporter go crazy with fear, anxiety, frustration. We should all know better by now, no? Let’s face it: rumours will always surge around exceptional players and coaches; that’s the price you pay for having the best of the best in your team.
Felipão knows the game and handled it well. In a press conference yesterday, he made some quite strong statements: “I live and breathe Palmeiras. I do not work only for being a professional. I like Palmeiras, I like this club”. He also concluded: “The people [at Palmeiras] with whom I have contact all treat me with the outmost kindness. More and more, we want to work together so that Palmeiras can reach their goals in all spheres, and not only in regard to the football.”
In all honesty: can a palmeirense wish for anything more in terms of dedication and commitment to the club than Scolari is showing?
Our job – and with “our”, I’m now referring to the so called midia palestrina – is to get the facts straight, get the facts out. Your job, as a consumer of information about Palmeiras, is to chose your sources, choose whom to believe in. If you’re Portuguese speaking, there are many excellent and confident independent sources to pick from: verdazzo, 3vv, propalmeiras, ptd and lanostracasa, just to mention a few. Then, off course, there’s always the official website. For you English speaking crowd, it certainly narrows down a bit, I’m afraid… We’re trying to do our best here at Anything Palmeiras. Your feedback is always welcome: tell us how we can improve!
The New Arena
Construction work on the New Arena is progressing well, thank you very much. Walter Torre Junior has frequently been posting pictures. Also, Eduardo Luiz snapped some pictures today and posted them in the PTD forum. It’s great to see how fast the new foundations are being put into place, even under bad weather conditions.
Valdivia is in, then out
Our favourite midfielder was picked for the two friendly games that Chile’s national team will play this month: this coming Saturday against Portugal and on the 29th against Colombia. Valdivia did travel to Chile, but the medics there confirmed that he is suffering from muscle fatigue and vetoed his participation. The Chilean National Football Association has already announced that Cristóbal Jorquera from Colo Colo is replacing Valdivia, who will be returning to Brazil for treatment. Everything indicates he should be fit for fight against Santos on the 4 April.
The magic drawer
In the beginning of the month, and by the slightest of margins, José Ângelo Vergamini was re-elected president of Palmeiras’ Deliberative Council. Vergamini is politically allied with Mustafá Contursi – the strong man behind (or perhaps in front of?) Palmeiras president Tirone.
The current opposition has produced a document which contains several important modification to the statutes. These include:
a) direct election of the president of the club;
b) defined and closed election platforms, meaning that the president and his four vice-presidents will be elected/rejected collectively;
c) election in November, with the new directors taking office five days after Palmeiras’ last game of the season.
These proposed changes are crucial for the improvement of Palmeiras’ governability, democracy and transparency. It is very likely that the proposals would pass – in one way or the other – should they be subject to the vote of the Deliberative Council or the General Assembly.
There’s a catch: it is Mr Vergamini’s decision when/if to pull that proposal out of the drawer and present it to the Council. There’s no timeframe, no deadline. He could do it next week, next month, next year. Or never. It’s his call. It’s his responsibility. And we must all, each in his/her own way, remind him of that responsibility: his responsibility, first and foremost, to Palmeiras.
Mr Vergamini: have you peeked inside you drawer today?
ANYTHING PALMEIRAS 
Thanks Kristian. Very good post and thank you very much to mention 3VV as a reference.
Regards
Vicente Criscio
http://www.3vv.com.br
Vicente,
Thank’s for the possitive feedback. And in regard to mentioning 3vv: it’s an honour! Your work is a constant source of inspiration for me. Thus, again: thank YOU!
Have a great weekend and saudações alviverdes,
Kristian
Great post on what´s been happening in the Palmeiras World.
I got astonished with the web of lies and rumours which some “journalists” (?) and even some Palmeiras directors ( in deed they don´t give a damn about the team, just think in power and money, what else can be?) throw in the media, and the worst thing is that the public take it for granted, without questioning the truth behind, or at least what´s going on for real.
For that way we can see the low level of some minds in sportive brasilian media…
Luckly we live in the internet era and we can strike back with the Midia Palestrina, always looking for the true sense of the facts. We can´t let the Palmeiras supporters down!
Regards
Sandro,
You’re right, and it’s a problem not only in regard to sports journalist, but any kind of media “truth” out there. We always need to be careful, aware, keep a critical mind. And, as you say, look for both second and third opinions. Information is power. Abraço!