Don’t Cry for Me Costa Rica

Costa Rica has a problem. It’s not “rising crime and a souring economy,” as the Tico Times reports today. It’s public relations and the falling popularity of President Oscar Arias. To counter this problem of perception Arias has created a new ministerial post to manage public relations for his administration.

Says the news story:

Mayí Antillón, a National Liberation Party (PLN) lawmaker and business leader, will become communications minister in mid-January.

“2009 will be a complicated year,” she said. “The government will take measures to soften the effects of the (financial crisis), and we need to communicate those measures effectively to the press and to Costa Ricans. ”

Arias, who enjoyed a honeymoon with the national press early in his presidency, has expressed frustration with negative coverage this year. “Hiding good news or questioning it to the point of making it look like bad news is not just unethical, it is one of the worst traps the media can fall into, ” (Arias) wrote in a February editorial in the daily La Nación.

In non-related news:

Gypsy is closing on Broadway, another victim of the recession. Patti LuPone, who soared to fame and won a Tony as Evita, also won a Tony last year as Mama Rose, the lead in Gypsy.  Argentina has nothing to do with Costa Rica, except that they sound alike and both had PR problems. Has Mama Rose ever been to Costa Rica?