The Captain’s Coup: Reviving Wilfred Burchett's Activist Journalism about the Portuguese Carnation Revolution (Main)

Date: Wednesday, May 14, 2025 Time: 6:00pm - 7:30pm Location: Lecture Hall

Join Professors Daniela Melo and Timothy Walker, the co-editors of a new scholarly edition of legendary Australian journalist Wilfred Burchett’s writing on the Portuguese “Carnation” Revolution, in a discussion of this new edition-- published in English for the first-time (Verso Books, UK).  Melo and Walker will discuss how Burchett’s reporting sought to demonstrate the power and strength of popular mobilizations during the Revolution, shifting the focus away from political elites toward mobilized citizens.  Burchett's analysis on the roles of political elites, economic elites, and mobilization provides rich insights, revealing the types of networks and interactions between these actors, and the roles that narrative, storytelling, and emotions played in the making of the Portuguese Revolution. This event is cosponsored by the Consul General of Portugal in Boston and the Cambridge Public Library. Registration is required.