The Game Changed in Venezuela Last Night and the Media Is Asleep At the Switch

http://caracaschronicles.com/2014/02/20/the-game-changed/

by swohns • 12 years ago

131 44 12 years ago

rblatz• 12 years ago

"Let me put this clearly. Y’all need to step it up. The time to discard what you thought you knew about the way things work in Venezuela is now."

Done. But I didn't really know how things worked there before either.

DanielRibeiro• 12 years ago

This is a nice writeup of what has been going on: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2014_Venezuelan_protests#Govern...

What I get from it in a nutshell: the protestors started by the group who was unhappy with the continuation of Hugo Chavez's government. That group has lost a lot of legitimacy after 2002's attempt coup[1], but the pro-government repression has been brutal, and that situation is brutally escalating.

Edit: a more comprehensive summary from CNN[2].

[1] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2002_Venezuelan_coup_d%27%C3%A9...

[2] http://www.cnn.com/2014/02/20/world/americas/venezuela-qa/

andrewcooke• 12 years ago

i posted this in another thread, but just as it slipped off front page.

http://feministing.com/2014/02/20/toward-a-nuanced-feminist-...

it's a good description of what's happening (i know this is HN, and anything with "feminist" causes a shitstorm, but really it's just a very careful first person account that tries to explain all sides, so please skip the title).

but that was written before whatever happened today/last night.

growupkids• 12 years ago

Another brutal communist dictatorship. Why is it that some people think this one will somehow be different? It's always always always the same.

ChuckFrank• 12 years ago

Increasingly, I predict that we'll see more and more of these unreported incidents worldwide, especially as corporate media becomes more and more consolidated. Thankfully there are alternative news outlets that are available if you dig. Accurate or not.

http://www.alternet.org/world/washington-tries-regime-change...

The lesson that this reinforces is that we can not rely on the media for the news. If ever we could.

mark-r• 12 years ago

The link makes no sense - if the U.S. were rooting for the protesters, wouldn't they support reporting of brutality from government forces? And if the U.S. were in support wouldn't big media be right on it?

BugBrother5• 12 years ago

Well, any US conspiracies seems like a waste of money, since the Venezuelan government seems to do the impossible -- running an oil country into the ground.

(But lots of people will be certain that all of that comes from more conspiracies from the US. :-) )

slurry• 12 years ago

since the Venezuelan government seems to do the impossible -- running an oil country into the ground.

Most oil countries are badly run; and whatever you think of Hugo Chavez and his party, Venezuela was already at least halfway into the ground before they came along, tbqfh.

brc• 12 years ago

I find it very depressing that socialism gets tried over and over again with the same predictable results. Power-mad but charismatic leader, wrecked national econonmy, widespread shortages of every day items, suppression of free media and free speech and finally the government murdering it's own citizens to suppress dissent. It's the same story over and over but people still seem to think 'this time it will be different'.

vacri• 12 years ago

Stuff like this happens in Africa all the time without Western media picking it up. Westerners by and large aren't even aware of the deadliest war since World War 2, despite it finishing around a decade ago in Africa (Second Congo War). It's business as usual, not a new descent into corporate ownership.

BugBrother5• 12 years ago

This is covered in Europe, at least by my Swedish media.

Not so much by the left winger sources. Those are too busy attacking Israel than bother with the millions of deaths, rapes etc in Sudan/Congo...

(I usually get the motivation: "You should have higher standards for democracies." Then I ask: "How many thousand times different standards is reasonable without being a hypocrite?" Never got that answered.. :-) )

ChuckMcM• 12 years ago

The challenges here are threefold:

1) Trying to get reliable information out of a country.

2) Trying to figure out if it will drive "page views" or "viewership" or anything that pays the bills at the "media" center.

3) Creating a credible narrative around 'justice' in the face of massive injustice.

That is why "global warming, you may die tomorrow" is a more important story than "far away government is repressing its own civilians."

FWIW: The Economist has covered Venezuela (http://www.economist.com/search/gcs?ss=venezuela#masthead&gs...) but even it doesn't provide breaking news coverage.

firstOrder• 12 years ago

scan the press and find...Nothing.

Ah the old, "there's a conspiracy to suppress what my side thinks in the news".

Ten months ago, Maduro was elected president by the majority of the country.

Some of the opposition tried to create this spectacle ten months in. The whole point of staging a big spectacle blocking highways etc., with some rioting, is to get world headlines. This has been happening in Venezuela for over 16 years. If the country was really anti-Maduro, it wouldn't have voted for him ten months ago.

Also, it's not even like the opposition is united at all. It's completely factionalized, which is probably why it is out of power. It also reeks of that lazy, upper class, kind of slow and dumb Castillian Spanish aristocratic sense you sometimes find in Latin America. Like that man in the documentary "The Revolution will not be televised" who said "Watch your servants! They may be Chavistas!" Watch your servants, they may be Chavistas might as well be the slogan of the opposition. It's not something with much popular appeal, either in Venezuela, or even out.

scott_karana• 12 years ago

I'm not addressing your post, or the situation in Venezuela at all, but:

If the country was really anti-Maduro, it wouldn't have voted for him ten months ago

Elections can be rigged. Votes can be bought. There always need to be more datapoints than just that.

GFK_of_xmaspast• 12 years ago

I can't fund much about the 2013 election, but Jimmy Carter had this to say about 2012: """ "As a matter of fact, of the 92 elections that we've monitored, I would say the election process in Venezuela is the best in the world," Mr. Carter said, noting the center's extensive work monitoring elections around the globe. """

g8oz• 12 years ago

If it doesn't have much appeal then why do they feel the need to terrorize middle class neighborhoods as they article states?

christo• 12 years ago

Just because it's unreported doesn't mean there's a conspiracy. The media acts in their own interests. If they can't tell this story in a compelling way that sells ads then they won't. No conspiracy to suppress.

But if police are roaming around the city on motorcycles, shooting protestors then this is world news.

the_watcher• 12 years ago

Venezuela has one of the most notoriously corrupt and likely rigged election systems out there. No sane person thinks the election results were accurate.

cdelsolar• 12 years ago

You will need to provide proof for this other than "I said so". The electoral system in Venezuela has been audited numerous times by international organizations and deemed to be fair. PLEASE try to understand that the Venezuela you see on the news is not close to the majority of the country. Most of the country is still quite poor, but - they have voting power!

- A Venezuelan expat

4ad• 12 years ago

Ah the old, "there's a conspiracy to suppress what my side thinks in the news".

The article doesn't say that at all. The article complains about the apathy, it doesn't imply any conspiracy.

jessedhillon• 12 years ago

I think it's important, regardless of this blogger's slant, that we see in international news outlets the fact that the national guard is shooting civilians. Even if you dismiss his claims of paramilitary action as being partisan exaggeration, surely you can see why it's important to note that the government is deploying the actual military -- something you can see plainly in those videos -- against its own people? Our own President (US) just recently warned Ukraine not to go down this exact same path.

hcarvalhoalves• 12 years ago

So, you're okay with the president decreeing protests as illegal, military killing people and sending the opposition leader to jail? In a country where the state controls the media outlets? As long as the president is elected democratically, the guy should just shut up and put up with the lack of coverage from international media?

Nice rationalization.

madrusec• 12 years ago

I am glad you watched a documentary and felt as if you now have a good understanding as to what is happening in Venezuela . Just like right-wing people get their news from conservative, mainstream media, there are those who try to justify their inner ideologies and believes by thinking that the information they get from an old-fashion group of leftys is just, fair and even objective.

kenrikm2• 12 years ago

The Maduro vote was rigged, how do I know? I happen to have connections who were very close to Chavez. That's the most I will say.

amjaeger• 12 years ago

What are the press companies outside of the USA saying? Are they just as disinterested?

daniel-cussen• 12 years ago

No, I just watched the news here in Chile on Tuesday and it was in the headlines. It was very well covered.

marcosdumay• 12 years ago

In Brazil there was some notice, deep on the international sections of the written papers. I don't know about television.

oscargrouch• 12 years ago

Brazil television is covering.. saying the opposition is in prison (for a bunch of fabricated crimes) and that there are shooting at people.. like the girl that was a beauty queen and was shot as a example.. in cable TV GloboNews there was a special today.. all about the protests.. with journalists from Brazil, there in Caracas.. didnt see it..

fiatjaf4• 12 years ago

Are you seeing support to venezuelan protests from the same people who supported the brazilian protests in June?

hudibras• 12 years ago

The AP has a story out now:

http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/2014/02/20/world/americas/ap...

EDIT: I googled to find the AP story, but I just now stumbled onto another article during my normal aimless coffee-break web surfing. So I think the story is picking up steam.

http://www.slate.com/articles/news_and_politics/foreigners/2...

hornytoad• 12 years ago

"International Media Is Asleep At the Switch", only this guy somehow manages to see the truth. Yeah, right.

Interesting so many people on hn seem to be jumping on this.

So I went back to his oldest blog entries to see what his general stance is and if his judgements merit consideration or are slanted, which can be better be judged with years of hindsight, judge for yourself:

"To my mind Chávez’ hold on reality is so tenuous that he really does think that six million people poured onto the streets on April 13th to demand his return. And with a narcissist leader who’s that cut-off from reality, political miscalculation is the order of the day."

He was hugely popular then, and stayed that way until his death, if polls, which actually have received praise from international observers, are an indication. Chavez not only had the absolute majority behind him, they actually supported him.

Just compare Venezuela's voter turnout with that in your own country. Wikipedia says about Venezuela's 2012 election:

"The elections showed a historically high turnout, above 80% of the electorate, in a country where voting is not mandatory"

fiatjaf4• 12 years ago

The good question for me is:

what would YOU do if this was happening in your city? What choices does the unorganized and disarmed people have against a massive State with an army and policemen?

crpatino• 12 years ago

Take pictures of the policemen while they are murdering/raping/ransacking. Be very careful that their faces show up as clearly as possible.

Then print 100's of copies and drop them at their children's school, at their neighbors' mailboxes, at the church they attend and the gym where they train.

Let them explain how a regular day at daddy's office looks like to the people they actually care about.

unclebucknasty• 12 years ago

Just had an interesting thought when reading this article.

What if tomorrow, something similar happened in the U.S.? That is, what if government "forces" swept into a major city or cities and began arresting people on suspicion of terrorism, then sweeping them off to unknown locations? Simultaneously, what if drone strikes were called in on other "suspects"?

What in our current laws (or interpretation thereof) would prevent this or protect those who were targeted? The question may sound rhetorical or like hyperbole, but I mean this seriously: is a FISA court the only thing standing between us and such a potential reality?

SocratesV• 12 years ago

http://lab.org.uk/venezuela-–-student-protests

http://lab.org.uk/venezuela-violent-demonstrations-and-the-m...

Not claiming these are unbiased sources, because they aren't (especially the second link). But even so, they can provide a good balance regarding what most western media (NY Times, CNN, Guardian, etc) reports (and omits from those reports).

Some more and again, don't claim they are unbiased, but it's good to balance the coverage and these say a lot that isn't said in other places):

"What’s going on in Venezuela?" -- http://venezuelanalysis.com/analysis/10381

"Venezuelan Government Reiterates Calls For Dialogue With Opposition" - http://venezuelanalysis.com/news/10379

http://www.reddit.com/r/socialism/comments/1xt9pf/venezuela_...

And regarding the general situation (not current events necessarily:

"Despite Shortages, Venezuelans Are Eating Better Statistics Say" - http://venezuelanalysis.com/news/7632

"The Pros and Cons of Venezuela's Currency Controls" - http://venezuelanalysis.com/analysis/10317

"Could smuggling be to blame for Venezuela's food shortages?" - http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-latin-america-23885377 (small examples: http://pastebin.com/BFHKHdCG )

Regarding crime, read about the Policia Nacional Bolivariana, who controls the local polices, who is the Governor of the State of Miranda and which force controls most boroughs (Municipios) in Caracas and that in general, they refuse the that the Policia Nacional Bolivariana to act and prefer instead to keep their mostly corrupt police force (understand that they see it as another way for the Government to have more control, but the truth is the PNB reduces crime, you can read more here, but also other places - http://www.csmonitor.com/World/Americas/Latin-America-Monito...)

Also, note that before Chavez, most foreign oil companies were paying 1-17% royalties, after 20-30% (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Energy_policy_of_Venezuela#Deve...) and that most of the oil profits go into housing, social, education, security and infrastructure (power plants - fixed and movable -, roads, ports, railways).

Just another thing, believe that according to Article 72 of the Venezuelan Constitution, after the middle of the Presidential mandate, if 20% of the voters sign a petition, recall elections are scheduled. This has happened in 2004.

Not claiming there aren't any problems, there certainly are. Not claiming I'm a fan of the style the Government adopt, I'm not. However we've all seen in the past what happens to democratically elected Governments when they don't play ball with US companies, and Latin America knows this more than anyone (but also Iran back in the first independence days, before the Shah...).

My thoughts to the innocents that are caught in the crossfire and have their peaceful demonstrations hijacked by extremists. Hopefully Venezuela can overcome all current issues, become a better country and not go back to the almost oligarchic past of poverty (which none of the wealthy opposition ever tried to change) but not become a dictatorship. In summary, a place where people of all political quadrants can live and let others live.

The Game Changed in Venezuela Last Night and the Media Is Asleep At the Switch

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