From the Washington Post:
Dead Air in Caracas
Monday, May 14, 2007; Page A15
For years defenders of Venezuelan President Hugo Ch?vez have harped on what they described as the domination of the country's independent media by his opponents -- proof, it was said, that Ch?vez was no dictator. Two weeks from today that argument will lose all credibility. By then, Radio Caracas Television, or RCTV, Venezuela's most popular television network, will almost certainly be off the air -- on Ch?vez's personal order.
A lot has been happening in Venezuela the past few months. Having obtained the power to rule by decree from a rubber-stamp congress, Ch?vez has nationalized telecommunications and electricity companies, taken over oil fields developed by multinationals, and formed a single pro-regime political party. For Venezuelans, however, the loss of RCTV will be the greatest shock. For 53 years the television network has been a national institution, counted on for its wildly popular soap operas and variety shows as well as for its news coverage. It was on RCTV that Venezuelans saw Neil Armstrong step onto the moon in 1969, the first live-from-satellite broadcast in the country's history.
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