AFTER THE 1968 Olympic Massacre in the 'Plaza of the Four Cultures' in Mexico City, the government of the republic, having demonstrated where power resides by very practical and bloody means, decided to be a little benign. A change of President (1970) brought in the wordy and persuasive Mr Echeveria who called for an Open Society, free discussion, debate. His own role in the massacre was soon forgotten. There was a gradual liberalization. Without the older forms of direct suppression, the Mexican press-or parts of it-developed into responsible organs, reporting the news, carrying out investigative journalism in one of the nations where public corruption is most rife, presenting debate and criticism. One newspaper in particular, a long-standing co-operative, Excelsior, with its related magazines and evening newspaper, set a standard. Edited by Julio Scherer, Excelsior over the years developed into the most respected and reliable daily in Latin America. Financially, it strove to become independent of its advertising clients. They had exerted a censoring pressure themselves. It was, in 1976, on the brink of achieving financial independence by means of provident property investment.

These developments helped bring about the birth of Plural, the literary monthly published by Excelsior since 1971 and edited by Octavio Paz. The journal was featured in the editorial of PNR 1. In five years, Plural's circulation in the western hemisphere exceeded 20,000 copies per issue. It had the distinction of being banned in various countries. It had the greater distinction of introducing cultural discourse, political and ...