Reply #1: The author makes a lot of important points.He mentions his first look at Venezuela was as a priest, [View All]

[Judi Lynn]

when he lived in the slums, and is intimately acquainted with the life of the poor there.

His other look at Venezuela was from the perspective of an AP writer, when he associated ONLY with upper middle class Venezuelans.

He's got a good fix on what's happening, doesn't he?

His reference to RCTV was exceptional, fitting in with what other informed sources have already indicated:

What's your take on the U.S. media's coverage of the revocation of RCTV's (a Venezuelan TV station) broadcast license?

I think the US media coverage of that issue was similar to most coverage related to Chavez. You heard one side of the story and rarely got the other. Again, the other side is that this TV station actively conspired in a coup against a democratically elected president. If CBS, NBC or ABC did that in the U.S. against Bush they would be pulled off the air in five minutes and the owners would go to jail. In Venezuela, this station was allowed to operate for five years more and then, when the reauthorization came up for the privilege of using public airwaves, the government declined to approve it. They weren't even completely shut down, they were allowed to continue on cable. It's always alarming when a media outlet is closed, but the circumstances were a little more complex than the mass media generally reported.

Really decent to see something from a journalist who DOES know what he's talking about, isn't it?

Thanks a LOT, magbana. I'm saving this for future reference.