Features: Media Watch

Claims of Fraud in Venezuela: The Fake Evidence of Henrique Capriles

By Chris Carlson - Venezuelanalysis.com, Apr 20th 2013

Henrique Capriles holds up a vote tally at a press conference last Monday (Getty Images)

Opposition candidate Henrique Capriles has refused to acknowledge the results of the election, claiming the government committed fraud. In what follows, I will list all of the alleged evidence of fraud cited by Capriles, and explain why every single example is either demonstrably false, or extremely implausible.

In the End, Awful Journalism

By Chris Carlson - Venezuelanalysis.com, Mar 12th 2013

(archive)

On the occasion of Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez’s death, much of the international media responded in typical fashion, by painting the Chavez administration much as they painted it when Chavez was alive—as an autocratic regime led by a foolish tyrant who mismanaged the country and squandered its oil wealth.

Exposing Five Key Media Myths about Chavez’s Health and Swearing-in

By Ewan Robertson and Tamara Pearson - Venezuelanalysis.com , Jan 8th 2013

Venezuelans signing a petition on Sunday against the media distortions (agencies)

Over the last few weeks the private English language media has stepped up its campaign against the Venezuelan revolution, spreading a number of lies and misconceptions around President Hugo Chavez’s health, and the swearing-in for his new term. Here, Venezuelanalysis.com debunks the top five lies currently being spread by private media.

What the Statistics Tell Us about Venezuela in the Chavez Era

By Chris Carlson - Venezuelanalysis.com, Nov 30th 2012

In the lead up to Venezuela’s presidential election earlier this year, the picture painted in most private media was that of a country falling apart. But a brief look at the statistics offers a very different story, one that helps explain why the majority of the Venezuelan people keep re-electing a government that, according to the private media, is driving the country into the ground.

Capriles, Homophobia, Anti-Semitism and Systemic Violence: Understanding the Venezuelan Elections

By Rachael Boothroyd, Venezuelanalysis.com, Apr 5th 2012

Anti-Chavez Venezuelan media quickly latched onto the Western media line about a state campaign of “persecution” against opp

With the Venezuelan elections now looming, and with Chavez’s approval ratings stubbornly hovering around the 57% mark, it would seem that the international media has stepped up its “disinformation” campaign against the Bolivarian revolution with renewed urgency, producing the kind of biased, baseless and manipulative stories about the “persecution” of opposition presidential candidate, Capriles Radonski, that have been filling the corporate press’ Latin American correspondence pages for weeks.

If Venezuela were Measured by the Majority

By Tamara Pearson – Venezuelanalysis.com, Dec 30th 2010

What real democracy looks like: A communal council in Merida votes for its electoral commission in July 2010 (Tamara Pearson).

When Newsweek ranked Venezuela last out of 100 countries for “economic dynamism” it had a certain kind of economy and benchmarks in mind. Venezuela is constantly attacked and demonised by U.S based “studies”, “experts”, and “reports”, but what if its economy and political life were to be measured according to the benchmarks of the Venezuelan majority?

Fighting Corruption or Persecuting Political Opponents in Venezuela? A Response to the New York Times

By James Suggett - Venezuelanalysis.com, Apr 13th 2010

On April 3^rd, the New York Times lent a hand to Venezuela’s elite, neo-liberal opposition by warping positive news about the government’s anti-corruption efforts into a profoundly biased diatribe about supposed political persecution.

Anti-Semitism or Anti-Imperialism in Venezuela?

By James Suggett – Venezuelanalysis.com, Feb 12th 2008

When the recent accusations of government-sponsored anti-Semitism are thoroughly investigated, it is revealed that in the majority of cases, the strongly anti-imperialist political sentiments of Venezuelan social movements are erroneously conflated with anti-Semitism.

Chavez and RCTV - Tilting the Balance against 'The Bad Guy'

By Media Lens, Jun 15th 2007

Attacks on free speech across the region do not make the front pages of the British and American press. As usual, alleged concerns for democracy and human rights mask deeper priorities: protecting governments that toe the line dictated by Western power, and undermining those that do not.

How Financial Times’ Limited Sources Compromised its Venezuela Coverage

By Justin Delacour - Venezuelanalysis.com, Apr 16th 2007

With the recent departure of Financial Times correspondent Andrew Webb-Vidal from his post in Caracas, now is as good a time as ever to review Webb-Vidal’s partisan and sometimes erroneous coverage, in hopes that the Financial Times will turn over a new leaf in its future reporting of the country.

The Op-Ed Assassination of Hugo Chávez

By Justin Delacour - Extra!, Nov 14th 2006

In studying the opinion pages of the top 25 circulation newspapers in the United States during the first six months of 2005, Extra! found that 95 percent of the nearly 100 press commentaries that examined Venezuelan politics expressed clear hostility to the country’s democratically elected president.

Ridiculing Chavez - The Media Hit Their Stride, Part 1

By Media Lens, May 16th 2006

Controlling what we think is not solely about controlling what we know - it is also about controlling who we respect and who we find ridiculous. The deeper implication - all the more powerful because it is unstated, almost subliminal - is that figures like Hugo Chavez and Evo Morales do not merit balanced 'professional' media treatment - the rules do not apply to them because they are beyond the pale.

Editing Chavez to Manufacture a Slur

By FAIR, Jan 23rd 2006

Some U.S. media outlets spread spurious charges of anti-Semitism against Venezuela's President Chavez. Surely anti-Semitism is a problem that deserves to be treated seriously, and not used as a pretense to bash official enemies.

Analysis of The Wall Street Journal Editorial-Page Coverage of Venezuela

By Venezuela Information Office, Feb 13th 2005

Led by editorials by Mary Anastasia O'Grady, the WSJ has repeatedly published unbalanced and inaccurate information on the political and economic situation of Venezuela, and about President Chavez

U.S. News & World Report Spreads Disinformation about Chavez Government Support for Terrorism

By Gregory Wilpert, Oct 2nd 2003

The appearance of a baseless article like this, combined with recent statements by the head of the Southern Command, that Venezuela’s Margarita Island is a haven for Islamic terrorist groups, suggests that the Bush administration is setting the stage for declaring Venezuela a “rogue” state.