July 07, 2008
You sir, are not a journalist
AP Photo
The photograph posted above provided me with a hearty laugh when I arrived at the office today, harried by a slew of rather irrelevant news stories I was charged with editing before lunch. Cuban dictator Raul Castro is shown holding the newly minted press ID card bequeathed to him during the 8th Congress of the Cuban Journalists Union (UPEC). Apparently, the gathering of propaganda writers made Cuba’s newest crackpot regime leader an honorary member. Ah well, such is life . . . not much surprises me anymore with regards to the laughable audacity of the so-called government in Havana.
What really did capture my attention however, was a small piece posted in Periodico 26, a “news” daily based in Las Tunas. Author Circles Robinson penned a short article titled “Cuba’s Media Contemplates Changes." Alright, I said . . . I’ll bite. Perhaps this could be a worthwhile article. Perhaps some of the regime’s propaganda writers have grown keen to the idea of forming an actual cadre of real journalists, intent on writing – at the very least – a bit of truth amid the sea of nonsense that is constantly emerging from the offices of Granma and Juventud Rebelde. Perhaps.
Perhaps not.
Robinson opens the piece with a paragraph that creates a false sense of hope before dashing any positive expectations the reader might have:
“Cuba’s journalists are gearing up for a major congress on July 3-5 that could reshape what Cubans see on TV screens, in newspapers and on the radio, as well as the way the island reaches out to the world.”
After his introduction, Robinson goes on to state that much of Latin America, as well as the United States, is mired with a press that falls under the evil control of corporate entities bent on putting corporate needs over those of “peoples, communities and nations.” “Cuba has no intention of going that route,” says Robinson. “Its entire media is publicly-owned and non-profit, and the directives come from the Communist Party, the center of the island’s political life.”
Notice that one line? “Directives come from the Communist Party.” So, as opposed to having its directives come from the people it serves, Cuba’s body of official so-called “journalists” takes its directives from a de-facto government body infamous for its repression. He admits coldly and matter-of-factly that “yes, we are propaganda artists . . . not journalists, and that’s just as it should be.”
Is Mr. Robinson – when he accuses journalists outside of Cuba of working for the benefit of corporations and not the peoples of the world – referring to those brave souls currently operating in Zimbabwe, reporting on the dire political violence occurring there on a daily basis as a result of Robert Mugabe’s campaign of destruction waged against his own people? Perhaps he’s referring to the late Japanese journalist, Kenji Nagai, who was publicly murdered by a Burmese soldier while covering last year’s uprising of civilians and Buddhist monks pressing for an end to that nation’s military dictatorship? No? Maybe it was the Wall Street Journal’s very own Daniel Pearl?
Before you begin making accusations about journalists the world-over, Mr. Robinson, perhaps you should have a look in the mirror. What you’ll see is not a member of the international media, not an altruistic defender of human rights using the camera and a pen as his weapons.
No sir. What you’ll see is a scared boy wearing a mask he hopes will disguise himself in order to give the appearance of a man willing to risk his life to give voice to those without the ability to speak out to the world at large.
You sir, are not a member of my professional community. You sir, aren’t even a mediocrity.
You sir, are a farce . . .
Posted by Anatasio Blanco at July 7, 2008 01:23 PM
Trackback Pings
TrackBack URL for this entry:
http://www.babalublog.com/cgi-bin/mt/hut.cgi/8830
Comments
No, he's not really a farce. He's something more commonplace, one of the great banes of Cuba's history. He's just one more amoral, shameless opportunist. His name is, and long has been, legion.
Posted by: asombra ![[TypeKey Profile Page]](http://www.babalublog.com/nav-commenters.gif)
at July 7, 2008 02:02 PM
Anastasio,
... speaking of farce ... IMHO, you were way too kind in addressing "la china" as sir ... lol!!! he's really un "energumeno" :)
I wish you well :) Melek
"Our work has integrity when what we do follows from who we are instead of who we are following from what we do."~ A.Watts
Posted by: Melek at July 7, 2008 02:11 PM
I have an old I.D. card that says I was a member of the Mickey Mouse Club. I bet my card is worth more than raul's press card any day.
Comunistas de mierda.
Posted by: Marta at July 7, 2008 02:20 PM
I agree with Marta. She is right on two counts. Her Mickey Mouse card IS worth more that Raulitas I.D. card AND.... he is a comunista de MIERDA!
Posted by: Henry Agueros at July 7, 2008 04:35 PM
The bottom line for me is simply that I find it patently offensive that a man like this "Circles Robinson" fellow (what type of name is that anyhow?) would ever compare himself to journos who regularly risk their lives to cover stories involving the downtrodden or displaced (as a result of war), while he works each and every day to promote a totalitarian system that most (though not all) folks in the journalism business are working to expose. Granted, we have seen time and again, the way in which many journalists dirty their reputations by either tacitly or overtly supporting dictatorships like the one in Cuba. Those individuals however, are not journalists - rather, propagandists.
Robinson's piece however, is a great offense to the great men and women who DO practice real journalism for altruistic/humanistic reasons.
The word "umbrage" seems quite appropriate here.
Posted by: CubaWatch at July 7, 2008 05:17 PM
Post a comment
Thanks for signing in, . Now you can comment. (sign out)
(If you haven't left a comment here before, you may need to be approved by the site owner before your comment will appear. Until then, it won't appear on the entry. Thanks for waiting.)
