Buenos Aires, March 8 (NA) – Host Mirtha Legrand sparked a surprising moment on her show 'La noche de Mirtha' when, during a conversation with journalist Alfredo Leuco, she asked him a direct question about his political past: 'You were a communist, weren't you?'. Leuco confirmed the host's statement and explained that during his university years, he was a communist. 'Exactly. In my youth, when I was in college, I was a leftist,' he replied. He said his original surname was Leucovich, but he shortened it for several reasons: he was looking for an easier name to remember for his goal of becoming a football commentator and also to protect himself in a complicated political context. Leuco also noted that during the dictatorship, he preferred not to use his full surname to avoid problems with the authorities. 'One way to protect myself from the police was not to have a surname when they asked for your documents,' he explained. The journalist also recounted that at some point after the AMIA bombing, he considered recovering his original surname, but ultimately decided against it after journalist Jorge Lanata advised him to keep the name he was already publicly known by. Over the years, Leuco stated that his political views have changed radically. 'Today I am strongly anti-communist,' he affirmed, and emphasized that he defends democracy in different countries. The conversation also brought to light the story behind his artistic surname. As he recounted, that period occurred while he was studying in Córdoba and was part of the political climate that the university environment was going through at that time.
