From today, Marta Carazo will be the new face of Telediario 2, the figure who will tell us the news at night on La 1 with all the credibility and craft that a journalist must bring to the position of presenter. Carazo (Madrid, 51 years old), until now a correspondent in Brussels after a 25-year career in public television, replaces Carlos Franganillo, who has left for Telecinco.
Question. What did you miss in Spain?
Answer. The first thing I always do when crossing the border is to stop at a coffee shop and have a proper latte, because there are a thousand types of cafes and sophisticated places there, but coffee with milk, none. Terrace, sun and coffee. That's what it's like to be in Spain.
Q. Did you like Brussels?
A. A lot. It's hard, but it's been like taking a master's degree. I did a master's degree when I arrived at Canal 24 horas on RTVE and another in Brussels. It's hard for me to put it down.
Q. What about your family?
A. I was going for five years and I'm coming back at three and a half. My daughters, who are 18 and 15 years old, felt terrible then to go and now it feels terrible to go back. Now they are afraid to study in Spanish!
Q. The first thing I thought when his name was published was that he was finally going to get rid of that cold face he had in Brussels.
A. I've been told this by a lot of people (laughs). As soon as I was on the street for five minutes I had to start jumping around to get rid of the cold, but I wanted to be on the street, in the news and in the live shows because if you're there, you're there. I won't miss the gray, the days when it seems that the sun doesn't rise, that the sun doesn't rise. There were days when I had a hard time getting out of bed, it's a physical thing.
Q. What was the hardest thing to cover?
A. Emotionally, the war in Ukraine. We were at the epicenter of the anti-Russia movement, it was all very intense and for many it was very difficult. It was our turn. Not because of danger, but because it was shocking, because the dimension was enormous, you sensed a lot of concern and it was difficult for me to get back through that first month.
Will we make mistakes? Yes, right. But I'll only feel bad if I think we're doing it wrong, not because someone criticizes me
Q. Is the pressure on a public television station greater than on another medium?
A. It's subject to greater scrutiny and it has to be that way because we all pay for it. Maybe it's older and we try to be especially rigorous. In that sense, it's a pressure because my fault is mine, but I represent everyone a little bit.
Q. Are you worried about cross-pressures from right and left?
A. You think about it, but luckily it catches me older, mature. Will we make mistakes? Yes, right. But I'll only feel bad if I think we're doing it wrong, not because someone criticizes me. It's a responsibility to myself and to the team that makes the 2. It will be accountable to ourselves.
Jaime Villanueva
Q. Will you look at the audience out of the corner of your eye?
A. Not much. I've never been very attentive to the audience because I've always believed in a public television that can do things that others can't do. We're lucky enough to be able to dedicate time to contextualizing topics that other TV stations can't because they lose their audience. And we also owe it to minority audiences who have the right to have their space. I'll have to be aware of doing it well, well-oiled with the team and calm with myself, not with the hearings. There will be others who worry about this. The day I don't feel comfortable with myself because I'm not doing well, I'll have to make a decision, but it won't be because the audience is going well or badly. If that's the case, others will make the decision for me.
Q. Don't we know what it costs to make a newscast?
A. The dimension. It's a giant ship at work. It makes me angry when they say "the news of...", in this case Franga, because there is a huge team behind it. We can put a face to it, but behind it is what people don't know.
I've always believed in a public broadcaster that can do things that others can't do
Q. She is a friend of Franganillo. Will they continue to see each other? Will they get stung?
A. We are both amused by this situation. We are very good colleagues and friends and we have spoken in this time. But neither Franga nor I are like that. Anyone who wants to create an environment of competitors doesn't know us.
Q. What character do you want to give to the Telediario?
A. Naturalness, making things easy, bringing the news closer to the viewer. It's one thing for them to listen to you, but it's another thing for them to internalize and make what you're telling their own. And that depends on charisma and how you convey it, as well as the work behind it. I get on something that's already working, I don't have to start it from scratch.
Q. Television information has changed.
A. TV has opted for post-production, infographics... And that's fine without distracting because the news is not a show. It's all well and good to get him out of the rigidity of the table, but not to walk around for the sake of strolling. If you're doing a virtual reality and you're in the chamber, it must make sense. And that's pretty clear on TVE, you can't make a news show. They tell me I'm very serious and I'm serious, it's true. You have to provide as much visual as possible, but without distracting.
I want to make a neutral news program
Q. Their teachers?
A. Rosa María Calaf is the one who opened up the world to viewers. For a long time I have been accompanied by Ana Blanco, a person who has known how to stay without getting caught up in trends that in the short term may favor you, but then are harmful. You have to continue to be yourself and Ana Blanco knows how to do it, she is a master of knowing how to be. And most recently, now Alejandra Herranz, who is very fresh, wonderful for a very dynamic Telediario 1, very conscientious and hardworking.
Q. Are you pursuing a downtown news program?
A. I want to make a neutral newscast. I've been at TVE for 25 years, I've been through all kinds of governments and for me the quality of the news has always depended on the quality of the professional who was there, regardless of their political affiliation. This is what TVE should be and anyone who thinks otherwise is very wrong. TVE is a public television, and public television belongs to everyone, from one side to the other. I'm going to try and I think I'm going to succeed because right now we're getting there.
Q. She is a woman and is 50 years old. Is it a message?
A. I'm excited about this because I've seen on all European television a commitment to mature people and experience. I've always been sad that in Spain we went for a line like the one seen on some Latin American televisions, which is exuberance, the commitment to youth, beauty and size 36 or 38. TVE has a different vision and I think it's very commendable, why not. If you have a wonderful 30-year-old candidate with a great guy, then great. But if your candidate is 50, has experience that she can bring to the table, and has a normal 50-year-old body, it's a very smart bet. It's the same in the U.S., I don't know why we have that prejudice here. I think the 50s are wonderful, I feel great, people are tired of that stereotype and they're going to value it, that's in the past. And at TVE we can do it, make brave decisions and I'm proud of that.
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