No menu items!

COSTA RICA'S LEADING ENGLISH LANGUAGE NEWSPAPER

HomeArchiveSuñol and Murillo shaped C.R. journalism

Suñol and Murillo shaped C.R. journalism

He was one of Costa Rica’s most influential and important journalists. But Julio Suñol’s career included more than crafting some of the country’s most prominent publications. Suñol, who died Sunday at the age of 77, was an educator, an elected official, a professor and novelist. But mostly he was a journalist.

In 1969, Suñol founded the Colegio de Periodistas (Costa Rican Journalists Association) and became the trade group’s first president.

He was the director of El Diario de Costa Rica, La Hora, El Día and La República. In addition, he was in charge of production at La Nación and La Prensa Costa Rica. He also ran his own radio program, La Palabra de Costa Rica.

Suñol enjoyed the trust of many presidents during his time working as a journalist, including José “Don Pepe” Figueres, Mario Echandi, Rafael Angel Calderón and Abel Pacheco, according to the daily La Nación. He even garnered friendships with a future president of Nicaragua and of Venezuela. He was also noted for having visited China during a time when almost all foreign journalists were banned from the communist country.

But Suñol’s career was not limited to journalism. In the early 1960s, he also entered the realm of politics and found brief success as the only member elected by the Popular Democrat Party to the Legislative Assembly in 1962. He joined the assembly as a representative from San José. On Tuesday, the assembly held a moment of silence.

Decades after his stint as a legislative representative, his political career included time as an ambassador to the Organization of American States, Mexico, Venezuela, and concurrently Surinam, Santa Lucía and Peru.

Suñol also taught at the University of Costa Rica and the Autonomous University of Central America. He authored more than a dozen novels over the years.

Suñol was born March 5, 1932 in Puntarenas.

Wilmer Murillo

Wilmer Murillo, a legendary Costa Rican economist nicknamed the “Monster of the Economy,” died Jan. 14 of heart failure. He was 62.

wilmer murillo

Matrix Monster: Journalist Wilmer Murillo understood economics so well, that government economists turned to him for advice. He died Friday at the age of 62. Courtesy of La República.

Murillo worked for Costa Rica’s business newspaper La República as columnist and economics editor for 34 years. Along the way, he collaborated with some of the most influential people in the country. Journalists say he could look at a spreadsheet of complex economic data and within minutes extrapolate multiple news stories. He was a monster with numbers.

According to La República, he accompanied other prominent Costa Rican economists to Tokyo, Japan, Washington D.C., Taipei, Taiwan, London, Berlin, Germany and New York. When Murillo talked, people listened.

Pedro Oller, a La República columnist since 2001, dedicated his Monday column to Murillo.

Wrote Oller: “I preserve the silence in order to write the essential and to feel the profound hurt brought on by the loss of Wilmer Murillo. Honest. Direct. Journalist. Costa Rican. We lost a voice but we will not lose our direction.”

Trending Now

Costa Rica’s Pride March 2025 Defies Restrictions and Celebrates Diversity

A large crowd gathered in Paseo Colón, San José, to participate in the LGBTIQ+ Pride March 2025. It began at noon, as people marched...

Alligator Alcatraz: Trump’s Everglades Migrant Camp Draws Protests and Criticism

US President Donald Trump toured a new Florida migrant detention center dubbed "Alligator Alcatraz" on Tuesday, boasting about the harsh conditions and joking that...

An Expat’s Take: 5 Burning Questions About Life in Costa Rica Right Now

Have you been keeping up with the various events taking place in Costa Rica? There is always something interesting going down, and here are...

A Costa Rica Love Story: From Rustic Cabina to Separate Dreams

My Tica wife and I have been together for over a quarter century. When we met, I was living a simple life here. Three...

2025 Gold Cup: Honduras Advances After Dramatic Shootout, Mexico Ends Goal Drought

Honduras, with a surprising and dramatic penalty shootout victory over Panama, and Mexico, with a lackluster win against Saudi Arabia, advanced Saturday to the...

Climate Change in Costa Rica Devastates Coffee Farms in Los Santos

In Costa Rica’s Los Santos region, famous for producing nearly half the country’s coffee, farmers are reeling from heavy losses driven by wild weather....
spot_img
Costa Rica Tours
Costa Rica Coffee Maker Chorreador
Costa Rica Coffee Maker Chorreador
Costa Rica Travel Insurance
Costa Rica Rocking Chait
Costa Rica Travel

Latest News from Costa Rica