Why La Comay Had to Go

Originally published at JulioRVarela.com

Of all the emails and messages I have received regarding the cancellation of WAPA-TV’s “SuperXclusivo” show in Puerto Rico, the following note at the end of this post by my cousin Omar Pereira basically sums up for me why I always thought that the Boicot a La Comay movement was a “perfect social media storm” and why I felt that it was an important story for Latino Rebels to cover.

Omar has provided a bilingual version of his initial Facebook post in Spanish, which went viral in Puerto Rico and was also quoted in El Nuevo Día. He wrote this note the same night that the news broke about La Comay’s demise. On a personal level, when I returned to the island two years ago to help Omar and the rest of my family during the tragic loss of my little cousin, I witnessed “SuperXclusivo’s” immoral and illegal ways in trying to “get” a story. It was like dealing with a stalker, and let’s just say this: we knew all the tricks in the book, and “SuperXclusivo” NEVER got the story, yet they caused so much pain and grief during those sad times (and they continued to harass my family even after the fact), that I could not believe that such a show would ever maintain its popularity. Eventually, something would happen.

As I learned more about La Comay and how the puppet continued to blatantly lie about what it broadcasts, I always suspected that Kobbo Santarrosa would piss off someone for the last time, and social media would react swiftly. Think about this: it took 35 days during the holiday season for all this to happen. Can anyone remember another time when a #1-rated show went from hero to goat in just 6 weeks?

Now, those journalists who are defending La Comay (people, it’s a PUPPET) and saying that this is all about freedom of expression, I will disagree 1000%. Freedom of expression has its limits. Making money off of lies and innuendo is one of those limits. I really urge the Comay defenders to actually READ the FCC’s policy and stop misinforming the Puerto Rican public. Like I have said before, this entire boycott movement is the PERFECT EXAMPLE of true freedom of expression.

La Comay was a bully. Simple as that. People finally spoke out against the bully, and what the traditional dinosaur media in Puerto Rico fails to understand is that this is not just about 76,000 people. It is about millions, because those 76,000 people dedicated themselves to share news, make calls, educate sponsors and spread the word. THAT is what social media is all about: your message always has the opportunity to reach millions, just like La Comay did. La Comay used to be the only show in town. It is no longer.

As for co-host Héctor Travieso, who asked this week, “What did Kobbo Santarrosa ever do to deserve this?,” I have your answer. I was going to respond to his question myself, but when Omar wrote what he wrote, I didn’t have to. Omar’s words are my words as well. This one was for Juliancito.

If my crime is that I made this story personal, arrest me. It’s called doing it for family. It’s called doing it for love. It’s called doing it for a better Puerto Rico. The bochinche is for the old Puerto Rico. The new Puerto Rico is about inclusion, respect, and making sure ALL voices are heard, and not just the voices of a traditional mainstream media that have done nothing to advance the cause for my beloved island.

Here is what Omar wrote:

Ahora sí me desahogo. Admito que vi el último programa (la primera vez que lo veo desde hace mucho mucho tiempo). Es una pena que no hayan mantenido a “La Comay Renovada” como decía la promoción del programa para el 2013. Kobbo no habló mal de nadie, se unió al llamado del Gobernador de dejarnos de politiquería y ponernos todos a trabajar juntos por el bien de PR, y hasta criticó de forma sumamente justificada a una persona por quejarse de que el gobierno le regaló un “trapo’e bola”. Me imagino que fue “too little, too late.”

La Comay tenía que irse por cualquiera de las siguientes razones – sólo una era necesaria, y la lista es aún mas larga que esta. Pero nuestra apatía como pueblo le otorgó el poder a la “trapo’e muñeca”. Una cosa es un programa de chismes, otra cosa fue La Comay. Hoy celebramos porque no habrá alguien enseñándole a nuestro pueblo como odiar, como burlarse de otros, como destruir reputaciones y familias, y cómo usar el dolor de los demás para lucrarse. Esta victoria es de:

• La viuda, familiares y amigos de Agustín Areizaga Cordero (el que fue vilmente asesinado y decapitado en Moca, y La Comay tuvo la osadía de enseñar su cabeza decapitada en la TV)
• La viuda, familiares y amigos de José Enrique Gómez Saladín (“el publicista” cuando insinuó que se mereció su muerte
• Susan Soltero de la cual se burló en innumerables ocasiones por su peso
• Choco Orta la cual humilló por ser gay
• Itzamar Pena y Papulin por reclamar que su hijo no era legítimo
• José Raúl Arriaga del cual mintió y destruyó su carrera (los federales descubrieron que fue una fabricación)
• Magaly Febles de la cual se burló cuando le embargaron su casa
• Yolandita Monge la cual humilló
• Adolfo Krans al cual le destruiste su matrimonio con una mentira
• Una amiga mía que no voy a mencionar la cual hizo pasar por un infierno con su hijo y su esposo al alegar infidelidad
• Victor Santos, Rafael Cox Alomar, y otros de la raza negra por decirles monos
• Belen Martinez la cual humilló al decirle ballena negra (por su peso y su raza)
• Los familiares y amigos de Lorenzo González Cacho, por utilizar el caso del niño Lorenzo para tener ratings y hacer dinero, y entorpecer el trabajo de las autoridades divulgando información privilegiada, posiblemente haciéndole el trabajo muchísimo mas difícil a los fiscales e investigadores
• Los amigos y conocidos de los supuestos sospechosos del caso de Lorenzo los cuales han estado siendo acosados por La Comay
• Todos los que la veían y se dejaban de coger de zángano por La Comay creyéndole todo lo que decía, sin cuestionarle nada, y hasta creyéndose que lo que hacía era “periodismo investigativo”
• Y finalmente, de mi esposa Cynthia Galinaltis, de mis hijos, de mis papás, de mi hermana, de mis sobrinas, de mi suegra, de mi cuñado, de toda mi familia extendida, y de todos mis amigos, por todas las mentiras que dijo de nosotros, por todo lo que nos hizo pasar cuando estábamos intentando mantener a nuestros hijos y a Cynthia fuera de su trapo’e programa, y por el via crucis que me hizo pasar para poder enterrar a nuestro querido Julián en paz.

Sobre 76,000 almas lograron esto, pero hubo una más desde allá arriba que ayudó, ¿verdad Julio Ricardo Varela?

Este fue nuestro #boricuawinter… Algo me dice que no será la última vez que nos unimos para hacer bien por Puerto Rico.

***

Now I’m venting. I admit that I watched the last program (the first time I do so in a long, long time). It’s sad that they did not keep the “Renovated Comay” as the show’s promotion for 2013 stated. Kobbo did not insult anybody, he echoed the new Governor’s call for the people of Puerto Rico to stop politicking and for all of us to roll up our sleeves for the good of Puerto Rico, and even very justifiably criticized a person for complaining that the Government had given her daughter a “trapo’e bola” or “crappy sports ball” as a gift for the Governor’s Three Kings Day Celebration. I imagine that it ended up being “too little, too late.”

La Comay had to go for any of the following reasons – only one was necessary, and the list is even longer than this one. But our apathy as a people gave this “crappy doll” all of its power. One thing is to have a gossip program, but La Comay was something else. Today we celebrate because there will not be anyone teaching our people who to hate, how to humiliate, how to destroy reputations and families, and how to use someone else’s grief and suffering in order to enrich himself. This victory belongs to:

• The widow, family and friends of Agustín Areizaga Cordero (who was assassinated in a gruesome way and decapitated in Moca, and La Comay dared to show his decapitated head on primetime TV)
• The widow, family and friends of José Enrique Gómez Saladín (“the publicist” when La Comay insinuated that he deserved his horrible death).
• Susan Soltero, whom La Comay constantly made fun of because of her weight
• Choco Orta, who was humiliated by La Comay for being gay
• Itzamar Peña y Papulín for La Comay falsely claiming that their son was illegitimate (they won a lawsuit against La Comay for this)
• José Raúl Arriaga, whom La Comay lied about, destroying his career as a journalists (the feds eventually found that that this was a fabrication)
• Magaly Febles, who La Comay made fun of when her home was repossessed
• Yolandita Monge, who La Comay constantly humiliated
• Adolfo Krans, whose marriage to Ex-Governor Sila María Calderón La Comay destroyed by lying about infidelity (and Krans eventually “won” in court, if there is such a thing, after losing everything else)
• A friend of mine which I won’t mention which was put through hell together by La Comay, together with her son and her husband, after La Comay alleged an infidelity (and her son went through a long period of psychological treatment after this)
• Víctor Santos, Rafael Cox Alomar, and other black Puerto Ricans for calling them “monkeys”
• Belén Martínez, who was humiliated by La Comay when she called her “black whale” (because of her weight and skin color)
• Family and friends of Lorenzo González Cacho, for using the case of his murder to obtain ratings and enrich the puppet, while disrupting the work of the authorities when the puppet continuously divulged seemingly privileged and confidential information, possibly making it much more difficult for the DA’s and the investigators to do their job
• Friends and acquaintances of the supposed suspects of the Lorenzo case, who have been stalked by La Comay’s staff, even at their workplaces
• Everyone who watched her and who fell for her lies, believing everything she said, without questioning anything, even believing that what she did was “investigative journalism”
• And finally, this victory also belongs to my wife Cynthia Galinaltis, to my sons, to my parents, to my sister, to my nieces, to my mother-in-law, to my brother-in-law, to my whole extended family, for all the lies she told about us, for everything she made us go through during the most difficult moment of our lives, when we were trying to keep our other two sons and Cynthia away from his crappy program, and for the hell he made me go through so we could bury our dear Julián in peace.

Over 76,000 souls achieved this, but there was one more from up above that also helped, ¿right, Julio Ricardo Varela?

This was our #boricuawinter… Something tells me it will not be the last time that we will unite to do good things for Puerto Rico.

***

Julio (Julito) Ricardo Varela (@julito77 on Twitter) founded LatinoRebels.com (part of Latino Rebels, LLC) in May, 2011 and proceeded to open it up to about 20 like-minded Rebeldes. His personal blog, juliorvarela.com, has been active since 2008 and is widely read in Puerto Rico and beyond. He is also a weekly contributor to NBC Latino. Recently, Julito represented the Rebeldes on CBS’ Face the Nation, NPR, and The New York Times.