José Pablo López, president of RTVE, closes ranks with David Broncano after the interview with Abascal and criticizes the "lynching" of 'La Revuelta': "All my support"

The president of RTVE, José Pablo López, has come out in defense of David Broncano and his team after the controversial interview with Santiago Abascal on 'La Revuelta'. The head of the public corporation has backed the decision to receive the leader of the far-right Vox, although he acknowledges that the encounter "invites reflection."

López spoke out this Tuesday through a message on X, after a night in which the La 1 program became the center of an intense conversation. "Many of you will say that it was enough to tell them no. But at RTVE we don't give anyone excuses to shout censorship or create martyrs in a theater," he assured.

The president of public television admits that "it was surely not the ideal scenario for David's talent", but reminds that it is easy to judge a decision once the result is known. In his publication, he also wanted to focus on one of the phrases with which Abascal said goodbye to the presenter.

"If, faced with a phrase like 'you're going to need luck,' some prefer to resort to opportunism to lynch David and public television, they show that they are more concerned about the wear and tear of the format than the substance of what was heard last night," he pointed out, before conveying "all my support to David and his team."

The change in audience and a farewell that continues to be talked about

The interview was preceded by criticism for the change in the program's audience. Broncano himself explained at the beginning that Abascal's team had asked to manage it and that 'La Revuelta' had accepted. The decision generated discomfort among viewers who considered that the Vox leader had been able to attend under different conditions than other guests.

During the conversation, the presenter and the far-right leader disagreed on issues such as immigration, housing, and the war in Gaza. There were also criticisms of the way some of Abascal's statements were addressed and the space given to his positions in a prime-time entertainment program.

The tension remained until the end. Broncano told Abascal that he could not wish him luck for the elections, and the Vox leader replied that he did wish the presenter luck because he was going to need it. He then presented the comment as a joke.

The controversy coincided with a historic audience for 'La Revuelta'. The program gathered an average of 4,815,000 viewers and a 33.6% audience share, its most-watched broadcast in terms of viewers. It thus surpassed the 4,387,000 who followed Pedro Sánchez's visit in October, although that interview maintained a slightly higher share, of 33.9%.