"The public tender, the results of which the government announced last night, for the construction of the Maranhão-Brasília (or North-South) railroad was fraudulent and determined by corruption: Folha published the 18 winners, covertly, five days ago and before the opening, by the state-owned company Valec and the Ministry of Transport, of the envelopes with the competing proposals."

A generation of readers may remember the lead or the "undercover." Others do not, but they know that the credit above the text "Competition of the North-South railroad was a farce", published on May 13, 1987, was "Janio de Freitas, columnist for Folha". A columnist is a reporter or should be one in spirit. Folha has many, and most are not. Now there's one less. Janio, the quintessential columnist and senior reporter for this newspaper, was dismissed on Thursday (15), after 42 years at the company.

The strategy of publishing the result of a bid a few days before in the middle of the classifieds pages is just one of the many brilliant moves of a long-lasting career, celebrated by colleagues and admirers on social networks in recent days. Reformer of newspapers and national journalism, perhaps only a former Formula 1 correspondent will remember to consider him also as a specialist in motorsport.

The volume of tributes is equal to or, rather, surpassed by the amount of criticism of Folha. For many readers and professionals in the field, Janio was dismissed for ideological reasons. Impression galvanized by the simultaneous exclusion of the columns by Gregorio Duvivier and Marilene Felinto. Recalling that 20 years ago she left the newspaper by her own choice, the writer wrote in her last article: "Now the choice is theirs, because of my left-wing label. Maybe they want to clean up the environment for the pure 'neutrality' of opinions on politics".

Atila Iamarino, Gerson Salvador, Hélio Beltrão, Henrique Gomes, Jaime Spitzcovsky, Karla Monteiro, Leandro Narloch, and Maria Homem also left the newspaper, according to the Editorial Board. Beltrão is on the list, but was replaced in November by Bernardo Guimarães. Narloch was one of the columnists most criticized by readers. If, on the one hand, his leaving does not make up for Janio's absence, his permanence would have been intolerable, as can be deduced from the number of complaints.

With or without the ideological discussion, the newspaper's explanation sent to the ombudsman highlights another problem, the financial one. "Due to budget constraints for 2023, Folha terminates the collaboration of newspaper columnists, including Janio de Freitas, Gregorio Duvivier, and Marilene Felinto. Janio de Freitas is one of the most important journalists in the country, with contributions to the press and Folha that permeate generations. Gregorio and Marilene were on their second season, the first closed at their own request." There were also dismissals of newsroom professionals.

Folha does not escape the rule of the country's journalistic market, which does not escape the rule of the international journalistic market. There is a severe crisis in the sector, impacted by an unprecedented technological revolution, widespread disinformation, and a factory of confusion around freedom of expression. There is a lot of discussion about freedom, but it is also necessary to discuss the survival of the profession of expression.

Janio had five weekly columns in Folha. His articles were sized by what he had to say, not the size of the placeholder on the page. It was the terror of the writers, who were rushing to balance expectation and reality minutes before closing. The deference has faded over the years, not without friction. Criticisms of the media and the newspaper itself were frequent in his pieces.

I would certainly notice, as Reinaldo Azevedo did, that Folha standardized the name "the Splurge PEC" ( Constitutional Amendment Bill) instead of "Transition PEC" overnight. In fact, from the night to the afternoon of Tuesday (13), when the nickname was launched in the title of an article on the negotiation of the proposal in the Chamber. As if it were hard to convince anyone to criticize Lula and the PT ( Workers' Party) right now.

According to the Editorial Secretariat, "Splurge PEC " is a "term that better reflects the purpose of the amendment, given that it will increase federal spending in the new government", comparable to the "Kamikaze PEC " of the current one. It also reflects evident sensationalism, supported only by Bolsonarists and the hydrophobic part of the market. This a very different criterion from the one adopted in the coverage of the "rapporteur's amendments", since the "secret budget", according to the newspaper, is an imprecise term.

These are unequal standards, strange to readers who have gotten used to a Folha consistent with its role in times when this attitude was absolutely necessary as if its survival depended on it. Janio, 90, has remained consistent with his role and time at all times.

_{Translated by Cassy Dias}