Venezuela
Chavez shuts down popular television stationPosted Feb 8 2010
On Jan. 25th, broadcaster Radio Caracas Television in Venezuela was taken off the air after rejecting a new law requiring it to broadcast the speeches of President Hugo Chavez. The popular station was also joined by five other channels that all chose not to air Chavez’s speech the day before.
In response to the channel censorship, thousands of protesters in Caracas and throughout Venezuela flooded the streets to express their anger with the government and their support for press freedom. The protests turned deadly when two RCTV supporters, Yosinio Carrillo Torres and Marcos Rosales Suarez, were killed.
RCTV, which has long been critical of Chavez, moved to cable in 2007 when they were unable to renew their license for regular airwaves broadcasting. Previously in 2002, Chavez claimed the station supported a failed coup and was plotting against him.
In a Committee to Project Journalists report, Carlos Lauría, CPJ’s senior program coordinator for the Americas, said this event is concerning for the future of journalism. “Pulling a television station from cable and satellite distribution because it chooses not to carry every word uttered by a politician would be laughable if this weren’t Venezuela,” he said. ”The action against RCTV is a disturbing sign of the growing censorship imposed by President Hugo Chavez. The authorities must restore all stations to subscription TV immediately.”