Media Watch

Chávez is no saint, but nor is he the evil monster depicted in most of the west's media.

With some exceptions, responses from the dominant media have been pretty much as expected: one-sided, distorted, inaccurate, and not at all reflecting the will of Venezuelans and their impressive support for Chavez and Bolivarianism.

The [Venezuelan] president asked a CNN correspondent and anchor of that channel to clarify that he never said that he “would bring tanks into the street” if the opposition won. He also requested that Glenda Omana straighten out that the government did not order any “information prohibition” in Venezuela.

The U.S. prestige press-meaning the New York Times, the Wall Street Journal, and the Washington Post-adopted four dominant frames when reporting on Chávez: the Dictator Frame, the Castro Disciple Frame, the Declining Economy Frame, and the Meddler-in-the-Region Frame.

Since taking office in February 1999, America's dominant media have relentlessly attacked Chavez because of the good example he represents and threat it might spread in spite of scant chance it will in today's climate.

Less than a year ago The New York Times described ending term limits is not as an attempt to "serve the larger cause of democracy" as it is when Bloomberg tries to do it, but rather said Chavez is seeking "the option to stand for re-election as many times as he wants" as part of "his plan to become president for life."

Guardian correspondent Rory Carroll has never intended to steer an even course between the Chavez government and its opponents. He has been far more concerned with titillating his readers by slandering the Venezuelan government.

International Crisis Group (ICG), issued a report on Venezuela entitled, “Venezuela: Political Reform or Regime Demise?”  Considering that the ICG is recognized today as one of the leading sources for the prevention and resolution of violent conflict in the world, the report is underwhelming in the amount of factual information and objective sources it utilizes.

Jackson Diehl, a Deputy Editor of the Washington Post, recently wrote a column under the title, “Venezuela's Chávez Fears Caracas Mayor” about Leopoldo Eduardo López, a mayor of Chacao, a district of Caracas, Venezuela. No evidence is presented in Diehl’s analysis that supports the claim of the headline.

As long as Hugo Chavez president, he'll be vilified and targeted. Latin America is vital to Washington. Venezuela is a key part of it. But America's dominance is weakening, neoliberal pillage caused it, the Bush administration accelerated it, Bolivarianism challenges it, so muscular militarism may replace diplomacy to restore it.