After Political Pressure, TV Record Removes Paulo Henrique Amorim from Show

By Arkady Petrov

RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – Possibly the most hated journalist on Brazilian TV, Paulo Henrique Amorim will be absent for a while after fourteen consecutive years on “Domingo Espetacular”.

Record summoned the host to a meeting on Monday afternoon, June 24th, announcing that he was off the show. Amorim, whose contract runs until 2021, will not be fired.

Record confirms the information: “Paulo Henrique Amorim is leaving the show and remains with the network for new projects,” said the network in an official note.

The host leaves Domingo Espetacular after a study in endurance. A vociferous left-winger on the blog “Conversa Afiada” [Sharp Talk], he had been living on borrowed time at Record since 2014, when the polarization between left and right became fierce. The station stood its ground as a survey showed that his face was fundamental to the e-magazine’s credibility.

In recent months, rumors spread that the journalist would be fired from Record for being a fierce critic of Jair Bolsonaro’s government, and particularly of Justice Minister Sérgio Moro.

Many will celebrate this news. The most recent rumor involving the host is a social media post stating that General Augusto Heleno, Minister of Institutional Security, had called for his arrest, because of a misunderstood reading of a quote from the journalist.

Last week, the owner of “Olá, tudo bem?” published a video asking whether Bolsonaro cheered for Flamengo or Palmeiras and sang “Once Flamengo, Flamengo until you die… soon”. That was enough for the Amorim haters.

The removal of Paulo Henrique Amorim confirms information published by Notícias da TV in early March, when the special reporter and future anchor of Jornal da Record, Eduardo Ribeiro, was promoted to Domingo Espetacular.

Not coincidentally, Ribeiro was the first Record journalist to interview Bolsonaro after his victory last October.

Amorim’s departure from Domingo Espetacular, despite the political pressures, occurs in a period of renewal for the Sunday magazine, starting with new hosts.

Record issued the following note on Monday evening: “Starting this Sunday, June 30th, Domingo Espetacular will be hosted by Patrícia Costa and Eduardo Ribeiro. Paulo Henrique Amorim leaves the program and remains on the network available for new projects.”

“The changes are part of Record TV’s journalism redesign process, which is being implemented by Record TV’s vice president of journalism, Antonio Guerreiro, since January of this year.”