"The majority of the Spanish journalists feel that censoring and self-censoring have been increasingly introduced in the newsrooms. And many colleagues think that the political and economic power have tried and often succeeded to put the reporters on their knees," Ramirez said.
"This means that communication media who have lost their profitability are increasingly more vulnerable to losing their independence," the journalist added.
In 1989, Ramirez founded El Mundo, one of the most-read newspapers in Spain. He was dismissed in 2014 and started El Espanol project, which will start operations this fall.
Ramirez attributed his dismissal to political pressure by the government of Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy, who the journalist believes tried to curb corruption investigations related to the alleged illegal financing of the ruling Popular Party.
