‘El Jueves’ editor appears in court over allegations of slander

The El Jueves magazine has a long history of publishing satirical and humorous news – more than 40 years, to be exact. But a piece published on October 4 about Spanish riot police in Catalonia has recently landed the publication in hot water, with accusations of slander by a Spanish police union.  

The piece, titled ‘The continued presence of riot police uses up cocaine reserves in Catalonia,’ refers to the law enforcement dispatched to Barcelona and other Catalan cities for the October 1 referendum vote. The Spanish law enforcement saw this as an accusation, and in turn took the magazine to court. Indeed, editor of El Jueves, Guille Martínez was summoned to testify on November 8.