University students rally in Caracas against Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez's decision not to renew RCTV's broadcast license. (AFP/File/Juan Barreto)By Justin Delacour
Latin America News Review
June 5, 2007
Venezuelans of different social stripes have grown up watching the soap operas, game shows and news programs of RCTV. Regardless of the fact that I consider the non-renewal of RCTV's public broadcast license to be completely justified, there's no denying the fact that the consumption patterns and cultural tastes of Venezuelan society have been shaped by RCTV's programming. Thus, the protests against non-renewal of RCTV's concession have not been altogether surprising. As Venezuelan president Hugo Chavez recently remarked, "There's no revolution that isn't tumultuous."
What's most interesting about the photos of the recent protests, however, is that the symbols employed by the protesters are clearly designed for foreign consumption. The protesters paint peace signs on their hands, give out flowers to riot police, and fly banners in English and Portuguese to communicate to the outside world. It's sort of like a cheap take-off on the Prague Spring or Berkeley in the '60s. Like most of what the Venezuelan opposition does, the protesters' symbols are completely unoriginal. Moreover, the protests' orientation toward foreign audiences is a clear sign of the opposition's elitism and political desperation; knowing full well that the Chavez government enjoys overwhelming popular support, the opposition constantly pleads for the outside world to rescue it from democracy.
Flower children with fake finger-nails?? Tacky. Very tacky. The protesters' symbols are quite deceptive. The Caracas "peaceniks" are protesting on behalf of a broadcaster that libelously and seditiously choreographed a military coup d'état against Venezuela's democratically-elected government. Moreover, RCTV director Marcel Granier colluded with coup leader Pedro Carmona even after Carmona had annulled the country's democratically-ratified constitution, its Supreme Court and its democratically-elected National Assembly.
RCTV does not support peace; it supports the interests of its owners, made up of an extremely wealthy family dynasty, the Phelps group. Just as RCTV is not a genuine advocate of democracy, neither does it truly favor "freedom of expression." As ex-RCTV employees have long documented, RCTV has served as the personal political fiefdom of Granier (the husband of Dorothy Phelps), who does not tolerate journalistic independence from his editorial line. Moreover, RCTV's programming has long been socially exclusionary, a sad legacy that the Venezuelan state is seeking to remedy by turning the channel's programming over to independent media producers. (You can click here to watch an excellent documentary, "The Broadcast Signal Belongs to Everyone," in which Venezuelan intellectuals, media activists and ex-employees of RCTV discuss the libelous and socially exclusionary character of RCTV's programming).
It is a rather odd contortion of reality to suggest that oligarchical control of the public airwaves, coup-plotting and socially exclusionary programming constitute "freedom of expression." But since oligarchs the world over do control the airwaves (and the press), we're treated daily to the Orwellian absurdity that "freedom of expression" is equivalent to corporate control of mass communication.
10 comments:
"go protest against big bad Chávez sweetie, Daddy will buy you a new Mercedes if you do!"
Once again everything here is blown completely out of proportion, yes there were protests mainly in Caracas, in Maracay there was about 40-50, in Barcelona maybe double. As Puerto la Cruz is an enclave of the wealthy you would think they could of managed more. I suppose they were to busy watching their soaps on RCTV via the internet. LOL. But the reports of gasoline and food shortages are pure US corporate media inventions, but you know their MO, learnt from Karl Rove spread a lie and eventually if it is repeated enough it will become "truth" that's the twisted reality of international media "reports" regarding Venezuela. I left the USA, gave up my green card to move here, no regrets. VIVA CHAVEZ VIVA LA REVOLUCION !
Dont worry compañero Justin. We will eliminate this conspiracy as we eliminated RCTV with all the strenght of the revolution.
Patria, socialismo o muerte!
I certainly appreciate that Venezuelan society is an oligarchy in which elites control a disproportionate amount of the television media. But that doesn't justify closing down a private concern because you disagree with its politics. It's amazing to me to see consistent defense on this blog of Chavez, a tragically predictable caricature of the Latin American caudillo. Don't the four-hour tirades in military fatigues give you pause? Or an assualt on the independence of the central bank, a lynchpin of modern democracy? Or the promises to arm civilians with Russian rifles so as to safegaurd the revolution? This doesn't bother you at all? We all know how this story will end. It's a tragicomedy that we've seen far, far too many times throughout Latin American history.
when left to their own devices latin people are quite capable of making their own decisions and running their countries in a fair and just manner, tell me chet can you name one instance where the US government hasn't interferred and imposed their corporate will on Latin America, with Chavez, Morales, Correa the chains are been broken that is why the US is on a mission to destroy these leaders, they used to rely on the IMF and World Bank to keep countries subservient, now with Venezuelas oil money the World Bank is no longer needed here. Accept that the US version of absolute corporate capitalism makes for a vile, unjust and unequitable society. RCTV was never about democracy it is all about the oligarcy desperately holding on to power and depriving Venezuela of true representative democracy.
The notion that the independence of the Central Bank is a "lynchpin of democracy" is too ridiculous to merit comment.
While you may argue the macroeconomic benefits of central bank independence, I don't think the notion is too ridiculous to merit comment. Particularly in Latin America, it is important in preventing the short-term artificial spikes in economic activity that often preceed elections - and the busts that almost always seem to follow.
My main point, really, is about Chavez himself. Why support someone who drudges up the most ossified bits of Marxist authoritarianism, when there are so many other leftist leaders in Latin America who are making important strides in improving social justice? Bachelet, Vasquez, and Lula come to mind immediately. Anyway, I am impressed by the design and thoroughness of your site. I know that it's quite a bit of work to keep up to date on all this stuff.
Why support someone who drudges up the most ossified bits of Marxist authoritarianism, when there are so many other leftist leaders in Latin America who are making important strides in improving social justice? Bachelet, Vasquez, and Lula come to mind immediately.
You haven't pointed to any moves by Chavez that qualify as "authoritarian." You may not agree with the non-renewal of RCTV's broadcast license, but unless you can point us to another country where coup-plotting broadcasters aren't legally subject to non-renewal of their broadcast licenses, you have no basis for claiming that that's an "authoritarian" move.
Indeed, Bachelet, Vasquez, and Lula are making some strides in improving social justice, but so are Chavez, Morales, Kirchner and Correa. The "good" left/"bad" left argument is peddled by imperialists in Washington who are trying desperately to formulate a divide-and-conquer strategy to destroy the Latin American left altogether.
Notice that neither Bachelet, Vasquez or Lula actually peddle the "good" left/"bad" left nonsense. Chavez has very good relations with Lula and Vasquez and cordial relations with Bachelet. All the Latin American left understands that the threat to social justice does not come from Chavez but rather from the United States government.
Although this is not my most insightful comment, don't all if not most of the people protesting in that photo look fair and mediteranean-i.e., the traditional masters of Latin America after its conquest and the remnants of the bulwark against the brown majority's struggle for self determination and justice.
Although this is not my most insightful comment, don't all if not most of the people protesting in that photo look fair and mediteranean-i.e., the traditional masters of Latin America after its conquest and the remnants of the bulwark against the brown majority's struggle for self determination and justice.
Yes, most of the people in the photo look fair and Mediterranean. However, my intent is not to present that photo as fully representative of the protesters. I've also seen some photos of protesters who aren't so fair or mediterranean-looking. That said, I do think that most of the protesters are somewhat privileged relative to the rest of Venezuelan society. The protests are centered in relatively elite universities, so they are naturally not representative of Venezuelan society as a whole.
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