The Chávez Era Perspective for an Innovative Cultural Policy

Abstract

This paper examines Venezuela’s audio-visual sector and its cultural and media policies during the Chávez Era (1999-2013). Accordingly, this analysis essentially emphasises how Chávez’s perception of the absence of representation concerning Venezuelan popular culture served as the basis for proposing a remodelling of cultural and media policies. Bearing in mind this scenario, we point out that this initiative took place in order to rescue, promote and appreciate national distinctiveness and to stimulate the population’s inclusion and social development. In this sense, we indicate that the reconstitution of Venezuela’s social fabric took place through a new, important and original agenda of cultural and/or audio-visual goods. Also, we suggest that, to a certain extent, the same process took place in Latin America.

Limits and paradox of TeleSUR: the media as a political agent of regional (dis)integration

“…In this context, TeleSUR's creation was key to the viability of Chávez's political project at national, regional and international levels (Fontes and Lessa 2019). This is especially true, as Beyhaut (1994, 189) observed, since cultural diversity, in its linguistic diversity, constituted an obstacle to integration (if there were no new forms of communication such as television), to contribute to overcoming language barriers in the region.…”

“…Chávez was also concerned with the diffusion of his image as a nationalist, a developmentalist leader and an opponent to US hegemony. In this sense, his project brought a cultural policy innovation, which encouraged and fostered the production of Venezuelan cinema, creating film schools and promoting exchanges of television content (Fontes and Lessa 2019).…”

The Media’s Influence on the Government: A Case Study of Venezuela’s Media Agenda Setting with a Non-Free Press and Its Repercussions

“…Later international dynamics also played a role in the mass media's international applicability, increasing Venezuelan desires to participate in the media even further (Fuentes-Bautista and Gil-Egui 2011) while also having an influence (Hayden 2013), especially during Hugo Chavez's years (Salojärvi 2016). The Chavez presidential era starting in 1998, when he was elected, triggered some of the most radical losses in the freedom of the press (Cazalis 2011;Fontes and Lessa 2019;Ratke-Majewska 2014;Sullivan 2011). By campaigning on a promise to end corruption, poverty, and to create a new political system, especially with the media embracing his rhetoric-which mirrored the media's previous stances-Hugo Chavez won his presidential election by a vast majority of votes (Venezuela's Chavez Era n.d.).…”