Red Pepper's Venezuela Blog

British Media Shocker! Rory Carroll "Doesn't Regard Himself as a 'Champion of Impartiality'"

[The BoRev.net blog comments on statements made by The Guardian's Latin America correspondent, Rory Carroll, in response to the question of whether Carroll's coverage of Hugo Chavez's government in Venezuela has been objective. To read the original Guardian piece click here. To read comments on The Guardian's original piece by members of MediaLens' message board click here.]

Responding to The Observer’s Disinformation on Hugo Chavez

[The Venezuela Information Centre (VIC) respond to a piece in Sunday's 'Observer' by John Carlin entitled "Revealed: Chávez role in cocaine trail to Europe". Click here to see other critical responses to Carlin's piece. To see Carlin's 'Observer' piece click here.]

The Observer Exclusive: Hugo Chavez is President of Venezuela

[Toni Solo takes a critical look at a piece in yesterday's 'Observer' by John Carlin entitled "Revealed: Chávez role in cocaine trail to Europe". The BoRev.net blog also criticises Carlin's piece. Click here to read the BoRev post. To see Carlin's 'Observer' piece click here.]

BBC Correspondent James Ingham's Reporting on Chavez's Call For Latin American Military Alliance

[The following post on the Media Lens message  board takes issue with the BBC's Venezuela correspondent James Ingham's reporting on last week's proposal by Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez and Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega that Latin American countries form a joint military force to defend against outside intervention. For the post's author, the BBC "again refers to Chavez with the now obligatory prefix, the 'vehemently anti-US leader'. The effect is to caricature him and predispose people against taking him seriously." The post also argues that "you'd never hear Bush described as a 'vehemently anti-Venezuelan leader', even though the description is far more appropriate in his case." To read James Ingham's BBC article click here.]  

Chavez Attacks Latest U.S. “Media Offensive” Against Venezuela

[Venezuelanalysis.com's Kiraz Janicke reports on statements made by Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez on Sunday in which he compared his Colombian counterpart Alvaro Uribe to a Mafia boss and accused him of being a "sad pawn of US imperialism". Chavez's statements followed what he called a "Colombian media offensive" and the recent visit of top US authorities to Colombia.]

The U.S. Press' Distorting Lens on Chavez's Statements about FARC

[Justin Delacour, editor of the blog, Latin America News Review, argues that the U.S. press will distort Chavez's recent call for the removal of the Colombian FARC's classification as a "terrorist" group.]

The Cold War Rages On

[Mark Weisbrot, co-director of the Center for Economic and Policy Research (CEPR) in Washington, D.C. takes a critical look at a recent piece by the Latin America editor of The Economist, Michael Reid, which paints a dismal picture of Venezuela and argues that the British left should support economic policies in Latin America which Reid argues are "building on the economic reforms misleadingly known as the Washington Consensus". For Weisbrot it is a tribute to the sophistication of the British left that they can see through the one-sided media coverage of Venezuela and Latin America.]

Associated Press Omits Relevant History in Report of Chavez's Harsh Words for Spain's former Prime Minister Jose Maria Aznar

[Justin Delacour, editor of the blog, Latin America News Review, argues that  a recent Associated Press report quoting Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez as referring to Spain's former Prime Minister Jose Maria Aznar as a "fascist" at the Ibero-American summit in Santiago, Chile, fails to include the relevant background information. Consequently, the report makes Chavez's statements appear so bizarre and undiplomatic as to be inexplicable. During closing speeches by Latin American leaders on Saturday, King Juan Carlos of Spain told Chavez to "shut up", therebye bringing the Ibero-American summit to an acrimonious end. Click here for an update by Delacour on this story. Click here for an account of this news in Spanish and to see a video of the exchange between Chavez and the Spanish king.]

A combination photo shows Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez addressing the closing session of the XVII Ibero-American Summit (right photo) and Spain's Prime Minister Jose Luiz Rodriguez Zapatero (L) and King Juan Carlos protesting over Chavez's speech (left photo) in Santiago November 10, 2007. King Juan Carlos told Chavez on Saturday to "shut up" during closing speeches by leaders from the Latin world that brought the Ibero-American summit to an acrimonious end. Credit: Reuters

As Usual, Only Half The Story Is Told

[Greg Wilpert, editor of Venezuelanalysis.com, comments on a recent article by Ivan Briscoe for www.opendemocracy.net which offers "a forensic assessment - both panoramic and ground-level - of a major political experiment."]

Eyes Wide Shut: The International Media Looks at Venezuela

[Mark Weisbrot, co-director of the Center for Economic and Policy Research (CEPR) in Washington, D.C., argues that most consumers of the international media will be surprised to find that the controversy over Venezuela's oldest TV station, RCTV, is still raging. We were repeatedly informed that President Hugo Chavez "shut down" the station on May 27th. But in fact the station was never "shut down."]