Though there are plenty of mighty rivals, the @NYTimes remains the gold standard when it comes to imperialist propaganda. Let’s look at another example riddled with biased takes and outright falsehoods (nyti.ms/3LSaLDh) [thread]
This has all the corporate media hallmarks. First, a description of an “implosion” without any causes (first the oil price crash and then murderous US sanctions). And then the gratuitous “authoritarian” label to establish Maduro as the “bad guy” and thus justify regime-change
There are also typical inaccuracies. Sanctions did more than “decimate finances”, they affected every aspect of the economy. And the US hasn’t “scaled back” anything, it gave A SINGLE LICENSE to US corporation Chevron but w/ all sorts of hurdles so Venezuela doesn’t get income
Traditional falsehood or an unwitting confession? The media loves this “once-wealthy nation” b.s. to refer to a glorious time with US puppets in charge and a paradise for corporations. But Venezuela was once the region’s wealthiest nation… under Chávez!
Really blatant ignorance. Not only is there an influx of remittances, but the Venezuelan Central Bank remains the main provider of foreign currency to the corporate media’s beloved and parasitic private sector
And you can rely on the paper of record to regurgitate a “study” with gross methodological absurdities to give propaganda a “scientific” veneer. Economist Francisco Rodríguez broke it down very politely in this thread:
Their master’s voice. The fact that a decadent empire will chase everyone who dares buy Venezuelan oil does not mean that this oil is sold through a “black market”. The US is the outlaw country #SanctionsKill
Not sure why there is a need to ask an “expert” when output data is easily available from OPEC. Also funny how these stenographers choose dates randomly, when they could have said that production was nearly 3 times higher in 2017 *before US sanctions*
In this infographic you will find a detailed timeline of US coercive measures against Venezuela’s oil industry and the resulting impact on output venezuelanalysis.com/images/15301
Usual dishonesty with a twist. Rather than stick to the usual loyal stance that the elections were a sham b/c the US and its puppet said so, the NYT goes one step further. Never mind evidence, there was “widespread belief” of fraud, so this pathetic coup effort became legitimate
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One blatant and outrageous lie that we missed! The Maduro administration has in no way, sense or form ever used this slogan. Not even anything close. This is something said by opposition commentators to deny that the country is improving. The NYT says it matter-of-factly to… twitter.com/i/web/status/1…
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Washington’s blockade against Venezuela has wreaked inestimable damage to the economy, destroying thousands of lives.
These deadly measures, imposed as “punishment” for defying the colonialist Monroe Doctrine, were designed to trigger regime change.
A summary 👇🧵
Venezuela's oil industry was re-nationalized by Hugo Chávez, breaking foreign corporations' control and putting resources at the service of the people with numerous social programs.
It is no coincidence that Washington targeted this industry with sanctions since 2017 👇
No sector of the Venezuelan economy has been spared by Washington's multi-pronged aggression, from mining operations to the banking system.
Even the country's 31 tonnes of gold (worth over $1.5bn) in the Bank of England (supposedly for safekeeping!) were seized! 👇
🧵The neverending love affair between the corporate media and fascism. For all the talk (or b.s. really) about being gatekeepers of civilization, establishment outlets have yet to meet a Global South politician they deem to be too far right. Let's look at another example (thread)
The article in question is from bourgeois mouthpiece Bloomberg (@business) and fawns over aspiring presidential candidate María Corina Machado. From the get-go she's described as a "conservative firebrand" which is code for "fascist"
The title is already misleading. Machado hasn't been a lawmaker for almost 10 years. And Chávez didn't "mock" her as much as say he had better things to do than engage w/ her fascist nonsense. A better headline would be "US invasion proponent wants to be president" (more below)
Venezuela's Nicolás Maduro and Colombia's Gustavo Petro held a meeting on the border and signed a new deal to revive trade between the two nations.
Venezuela will also reopen its maritime border with Aruba on May 1.
We just opened the second season of our podcast by putting the spotlight on US sanctions, their impact on Venezuela, and international solidarity efforts to oppose them.
Speaking of solidarity vs. sanctions, earlier this week Venezuela dispatched humanitarian aid and a team of rescue workers to Latakia, in northwestern Syria, which had received little assistance due to Washington's years-long sanctions.
🧵🗞️The level of dishonesty of @Reuters' Venezuela coverage is just staggering. Here's a piece on trade agreements between Venezuela and Colombia (reut.rs/3k7FcJZ). It has 8 bland paragraphs, very little context, and then boom! Propaganda on steroids (thread)
So many lies packed into a couple dozen words. Look at how it's framed. The evil Maduro broke off relations b/c he didn't want "aid" that "activists" were trying to send. First things first: there was, by USAID's own admission, very little aid in those trucks
Secondly, "opposition activists" is along the lines of the "moderate rebels" in Syria and the "no-longer-Nazis" in Ukraine. Their "activist" kit included Molotov cocktails that ended up burning one of the "aid" trucks. Corporate media ran w/ the debunked lie for a long time
🧵Whenever we read a corporate media piece about Venezuela, the 1st instinct is to go crazy at all the disingenuous reporting and biased narratives. Not great for your health. But after we’ve gathered ourselves, it’s useful to break down the propaganda. Bear w/ us here! (thread)
The piece we’re tackling this time around is from the bourgeoisie mouthpiece that is Bloomberg (@business). It comes on the heels of supremely dishonest contenders from the @guardian and @Reuters (links at the end of the thread) bloomberg.com/news/articles/…
Look at this headline! FFS! Venezuela doesn’t have “two presidents,” it has never had “two presidents”! It has one president (Maduro), who won a *presidential election*. And then there was this moron @jguaido who, on US orders, *proclaimed himself* “interim president”
🧵🗞️ Western media reporting on Venezuela is biased almost by definition. We know that going in. But every so often there’s a piece that ticks all the dishonesty boxes. The bad journalism equivalent of a perfect game. You might have guessed, this comes from the @guardian (thread)
It is brought to you by the Bill and Melinda @gatesfoundation. Because we all know no one cares more about honest reporting and “global development” than freaking billionaires
The piece is about a recent proposal from the National Assembly to regulate NGO activities. It’s off to an ominous start w/ this absurdity. How on Earth do NGOs (esp. foreign-funded ones) have anything to do with “democracy”? Corporate journos think western money equals democracy