Cuban Media Battle Crucial

Cuban Media Battle Crucial Havana, Jul 30. – The media battle currently waged by Cuba in defense of the truth about its situation against continuous defamatory campaigns promoted abroad was considered crucial by members of the 22nd US-Cuba Friendshipment Caravan.  In a panel held at the Havana-based House of Friendship titled "The Role of Youth in the Media Battle," members of the solidarity group agreed that 99 percent of information worldwide is controlled by big Western media corporations.

They highlighted efforts made by Cuba in order to broaden access to new information technologies, though this endeavor is also a target of attacks from known power circles interested in distorting the real situation in the country.

Some members criticized the US media in particular and said that most information is distorted to the point that what is good is bad, and what is bad is presented as good.

They warned of the danger faced by Cuban youth, as the United States wants to take it hostage through the Internet, and it would be a form of domination, something impossible thanks to the culture and education the Cuban people have nourished.

Participants also congratulated Cuban alternative media, including Cubadebate website, which keep many people in the United States and the world informed about reality in the Island.

Chief correspondent of Juventud Rebelde newspaper Yailin Orta, also a member of the panel, said that young journalists have the tools of new technologies and use them in their daily work, always with a discourse characterized by plurality and a strong spiritual force.

Director of Juventud Rebelde website Yurisander Guevara said that the country is seeking to develop infrastructure to guarantee Internet service, but he recalled the US stand on this issue.

"Thanks to the Bolivarian Alliance for the Peoples of Our America, Cuba has a cable of optical fiber linking it with Venezuela," he said.

"When we try to post a message with Cubaâ�Ös reality, we are immediately tracked and attacked; hence this media battle is waged in a hostile, tense atmosphere," noted Guevara.

Cuban panel members agreed that the main objective is to develop the youthâ�Ös analytical capacity, so they are no longer passive observers, and motivate them to be involved in forming public opinion based on reflection.(Prensa Latina)