Did Che Guevara Call for Eliminating All Newspapers?

After the Cuban Revolution, the Castro government did shut down independent media. Guevara served as president of the National Bank and Minister of Industries, implementing sweeping economic changes. Journalist Jose Pardo Llada, who initially supported the revolution before going into exile, is cited as the source for this quote. However, Pardo Llada's accounts were published after his disillusionment with the regime, and the exact context and setting of the alleged statement are unclear. Guevara's verified writings in 'Guerrilla Warfare' and his speeches do express skepticism of media independence during revolution, but in more theoretical terms. The blunt 'we must eliminate all newspapers' formulation, while consistent with the outcomes of revolutionary policy, may be a sharpened version of more nuanced private remarks.