Boric Administration Provided Billions to Save El Mercurio Twice: A Deep Dive into State Advertising Practices

Original article: “El gobierno de Boric salvó de la quiebra a El Mercurio dos veces”: Miles de millones de pesos fiscales al duopolio comunicacional

The Contradiction of Boric’s Government in State Advertising

A strong critique from President Gabriel Boric against the newspaper El Mercurio regarding its coverage of the Casen survey has unveiled an uncomfortable debate over the government’s actual communication policies. While the president accused the daily of maintaining «a line consistent with its history,» data and testimonies emerged showing that his administration injected billions of public pesos into that same media conglomerate and others. Critics argue that this support was crucial for their financial stability. The apparent contradiction between rhetoric and action in this area has become the latest episode in a tension that has characterized Boric’s four-year administration.

Concrete Data on Public Resource Transfers, obtained from the ChileCompra portal and quoted verbatim by journalist Maximiliano Alarcón in the medium digital Interferencia, is telling: between 2022 and 2025, Boric’s government transferred $8.723 million to the newspaper El Mercurio. Of that amount, $7.150 million came specifically from the category «Central Government and Universities.»

During the same period, Copesa, the conglomerate that owns La Tercera and La Cuarta, received $670 million, with $666 million coming from the same state source. These transfers occurred in a financially critical context for these media outlets, heightening concerns about the destination of official advertising expenditures.

The Vulnerability of These Media was Public Knowledge. In May 2025, according to information from El Mostrador collected by Interferencia, El Mercurio owed $362 million in social security contributions, prompting legal actions from four AFPs against it. Meanwhile, Copesa has faced a «harsh financial situation» in recent years. In this scenario, the significant transfers of state advertising take on another dimension.

As noted by the account BotCheckerCL on social media, directly responding to the president’s tweet: «El Mercurio was twice on the verge of bankruptcy during this period. It was rescued largely by the money the state paid for advertising placements,» highlighted Interferencia.CL.

The Most Structured Criticism Came from Independent Voices. In an interview with La Voz de los que Sobran on December 24, 2025, lawyer Mauricio Daza stated unequivocally: «El Mercurio was twice on the brink of bankruptcy and Gabriel Boric rescued it,» arguing that the president «had the opportunity to define how public funds were distributed for campaigns related to public policies. And a large part of the state advertising pie went to El Mercurio, La Tercera, and traditional channels.»

Watch here the broadcast of La Voz de Los Que Sobran with Mauricio Daza

This perspective was supported by journalist and director of the same medium, Alejandra Valle, who pointed out a «preferential treatment» from the Executive, including a flow of exclusive information.

The Origin of the Current Debate Dates Back to January 9, when Boric published on his X account: «I am not surprised by El Mercurio. They continue a line consistent with their history.» The message, which accumulated over 19,000 likes, responded to an article from the newspaper about the Casen 2024 survey, which, according to Social Development Minister Javiera Toro, contained «false» information suggesting an increase in poverty among vulnerable groups. Official data, in contrast, showed a decrease among the elderly and indigenous peoples. The irony was quickly pointed out: the same government that now denounced the newspaper’s editorial line had financially supported it.

The Reaction on Social Media Highlighted Discomfort within Leftist Circles. Users and analysts recalled Daza’s statements and the amounts of state advertising.

Lawyer Luis Mariano Rendón responded to the president: «It’s a pity that knowing this history, you decided to even proportionally increase the funding to El Mercurio with our resources.»

This Sunday, January 11, from the account of La Voz de los que Sobran highlighted a quote from Alejandra Valle: «The Boric government only now criticizes the role of the press when in 4 years they decided to rescue El Mercurio with state resources.» The controversy exposed an unmet promise regarding media plurality.

Established Facts Indicate No Change in Direction. As concluded in the analysis by Interferencia, «there is no time for Boric to change the course of this communication policy.»

This episode, which intertwines poverty figures, state funding for media, and campaign promises, concludes a week of assessments, becoming one of the final chapters of a contradiction that will define the communication legacy of the government: a rhetoric of confrontation with traditional corporate media while financially sustaining the very structure it claimed to question.