Corporate Media War on Latin America Sovereignty
Reality’s dawning on US media that Venezuela coup failed & Maduro’s stronger – what next, ask Russia to ‘ease him out’? In a recent lament for the failed coup, the Wall Street Journal admits that Maduro appears to be “in firm control” and bemoans that the Trump administration had predicted his “imminent downfall” too early. The WSJ admits that the White House showed “excessive optimism” and suffered from what critics called “unrealistic expectations that [US] pressure tactics” would easily force Maduro from power. The newspaper acknowledges that Maduro’s position is secure despite debilitating US oil sanctions and attempted international isolation.
‘Sexy tricks’: How journalists demonize Venezuela’s socialist government, in their own words Journalists revealed to me the tactics they use to sell stories painting Venezuela as a socialist dystopia. One described himself as a “mercenary,” explaining how he aims to please his employer’s funders. Due to budget cuts, the corporate press has outsourced their Latin America reporting to a collection of unabashed opposition activists.
Caracas International Communications Congress – Final Declaration: Now the Peoples speak Communication conceived by the large capitalist consortiums has become a powerful tool that renders invisible the diversity of thought, proscribes dissent, silences peoples and aspires to monopolize public opinion by reducing it exclusively to the ideas held by the dominant elites. The mass communications media have played an important role in discrediting progressive governments, discrediting social movements, eroding popular support for processes of change. They have done so through disinformation campaigns that manipulate facts and impose post-truth as a constant to shape the population’s understanding of the world and thus too their political behavior.
Netfa Freeman: Faux Left Leaves Bolivia and the Global South in Imperialist Crosshairs “Progressive leftist” in the U.S., also known as liberals who claim to oppose U.S. Empire but who have an aversion to making regime change methods of imperialism concrete and comprehensive cannot be described as anything less than nauseating.
The primary obligation of anti-imperialists who are not Bolivian and reside in the belly of the beast should be to expose and oppose US imperialism in Bolivia, and it’s pervasive and covert and overt foreign policies. And comprehensively reference to imperialism has to include the role of corporate news media that works as the fourth branch of the US government.
How Some of the Global North’s Faux Left Media Rationalized Bolivia’s Right-Wing Coup In our brave new age of hybrid warfare, corporate media play the role of ideological heavy artillery within the arsenal of Western imperialist powers. Day in and day out, “reputable” establishment outlets bombard progressive and/or anti-imperialist governments in the Global South with endless salvos of smears and libelous misrepresentations. But corporate outlets have not been alone in attacking Morales. Progressive and alternative media in the Global North have long portrayed Bolivia’s deposed Movement Towards Socialism (MAS) government as repressive, pro-capitalist and anti-environment—all in the name of “left” critique.
US drops false charge against journalist Max Blumenthal, related to Venezuela Embassy protection reporting The US government has dropped a false charge of assault against The Grayzone editor Max Blumenthal stemming from an incident at the Venezuelan embassy in May. Blumenthal was seized from his home by a group of officers and held for two days in cells and cages. The case was withdrawn after Blumenthal’s legal team sought call logs that could have exposed collusion between the Secret Service and right-wing Venezuelan activists.
Venezuela
Venezuela’s Civilian Militia now has 3.3 Million Members “The Bolivarian National Militia is the people in arms, it is the genuine expression of civic-military union,” Maduro explained. Venezuela’s Bolivarian Militia was formed in 2005 and granted autonomy in 2008 by Hugo Chavez. During the successive governments of Maduro and under growing foreign military threats against the country, it has expanded rapidly both in numbers, scope, and importance, attracting millions of civilians.
Venezuelan Oil Production Sets Historical Record in November Oil output reached its highest level since the U.S. tightened its blockade against the Bolivarian Revolution. Its oil production increased by more than 20% in November and reached its highest level since the U.S. tightened its sanctions against the state-owned company PDVSA in August. The average pumping of Venezuelan oil increased from 761,000 barrels per day (BPD) in October to 926,000 BPD in November. At the same time, Venezuelan oil exports increased by more than 1 million BPD.
‘OAS Is Major Human Rights Violator Against Venezuela’ American Association of Jurists (AAJ) president Luis Dussan “The OAS, the Lima Group and the United States have attempted against human rights in Venezuela through economic blockades, financing of paramilitary groups, and coup attempts,” Dussan said. “The OAS carries out the most serious aggression that can be perpetrated because it is the attack of a multinational organization against a single country.”
Bolivia
Analysis of the Final OAS Report on Bolivia’s Elections The Organization of American States (OAS) again issues a report with clear intentional bias. The document clearly aims to certify its own preliminary version and, with it, the argumentative basis for the coup d’etat in Bolivia. However, the reading of this report, like that of its preliminary version, yields simple conclusions about the intent – intent to manipulate – with which they were prepared.
Ecuador
Latin America says ‘No to neoliberalism!’: Ecuador’s ex-foreign minister Guilllaume Long talks on Latin America anti-neoliberal uprisings and Assange 1:15 Bolivia coup and “fraud” allegations 5:28 OAS and Luis Almagro 8:49 Ecuador protests against IMF 14:11 Lenin Moreno’s “betrayal” 16:32 Julian Assange 22:15 CIA spying on Ecuador’s embassy 25:10 US diplomatic warfare 28:59 Trump’s threats against Nicaragua and Mexico 33:18 Uprisings against neoliberalism across Latin America 36:22 Future of the Pink Tide
Cuba
Speech by Díaz-Canel, President of Cuba, “Let us struggle together for a better world” at solidarity with Cuba in Argentina, December 9, 2019 Neoliberal oligarchies, supported by the United States government, are intent upon maintaining control of everything they have seized in recent years using deceitful, perverse methods. Supported by corrupt judges and their monopoly control of the media in the fast-moving era of social networks, they promote and implement modern techniques of manipulation and politically motivated judicial processes, almost always focused on pursuing, imprisoning and destroying the image of progressive political and social leaders of the left.
If the empire tries to discredit socialism by stifling any development effort in Cuba, our nation is demonstrating just the opposite. Thanks to socialism, socialist planning, the socialist ideal, we have built a country where everyone’s fate is important to everyone (applause); a humane, educated, solidary and just society to the extent that a Third World nation, with few natural resources and surrounded by the most powerful empire in history, can be.
Human Rights Day Dec 10 – Cuba’s example A look at Cuba vs the United States
John Kiriakou on Torture in US Occupied Cuba The Times did its duty of reminding us what monsters the CIA produced in the early years of its so-called war on terror, people introduced to most Americans in the Senate’s torture report. These are people such as the CIA’s former Director George Tenet and Deputy Director John McLaughlin. They include unapologetic torture proponents such as former Deputy Director for Operations Jose Rodriguez and current CIA Director Gina Haspel. They are the creators of the torture program: psychologists James Mitchell and Bruce Jessen.
Granma review of the film on the Cuban 5 “The Wasp Network” Finally screened at the 41st New Latin American Film Festival, The Wasp Network (Olivier Assayas, 2019) makes it clear with historical objectivity that the Cubans who infiltrated counterrevolutionary Miami exile organizations had the right to watch over their country’s security.
Events
Celebration NYC December 14: Fifth Anniversary of the Freeing of the Cuban 5
Vancouver, December 31 New Year’s Eve: Celebrate 61 years of Cuban Revolution!
Join the International Days of Action against Sanctions and Economic War March 13-15, 2020
Delegations: Nicaragua, Venezuela, Cuba
Sandino Vive! Delegation to Nicaragua February 13-23, 2020
Food sovereignty delegation to Venezuela January 3-12, 2020
Organic Growers Association Cuba Agroecology Tour, January 7-16
Tour of Worker Cooperatives in Cuba, January 11-20
Cuba: The People, Government and US Policy Feb 28- March 8 Witness for Peace
Sites to Follow Venezuela, Bolivia:
