The New York Times (4/10/20) published an article describing the horrendous shape of the Venezuelan healthcare system. The human interest story, written by Julie Turkewitz and Isayen Herrera, followed several women through their nightmarish journey of childbearing in a broken medical system. The piece would be outstanding reporting, had it not fumbled the most important aspect of the story: how and why the system is as bad as it is. In true “manufacturing consent” fashion, the piece downplayed the US role in destabilizing the Venezuelan economy, and instead pointed to President Nicolás Maduro’s “authoritarianism” as the primary cause of the crisis.
The piece appeared on the Times’ front page on Saturday. The section of the piece visible on the front page pointed to Maduro as the cause for Venezuela’s healthcare problem, saying the system had been “crippled by a broken economy overseen by an increasingly authoritarian government.”
The story continued on an inside page, where it finally referenced the US role in creating the desperate conditions. The reporters briefly mentioned that Maduro claimed that US sanctions had some effect, but quickly brushed the claim aside, citing “analysts and critics” who said that Maduro’s charge had “only some weight.”
To back this up this dismissal, the authors cited Feliciano Reyna, the founder of a nonprofit known as Action for Solidarity. Reyna blamed the Maduro administration for refusing to accept help from aid organizations. He indicated that despite the sanctions, the country would be able to receive the supplies it needed from those organizations.
However, a few paragraphs later, the piece stated the government had been attempting to receive help through the Red Cross for nearly a year now, throwing Reyes’ criticism into doubt. The contradiction was not addressed by the reporters, and the doublethink was allowed to go unchallenged, even as the piece acknowledged that the Red Cross has been failing to meet Venezuela’s needs, due to a lack of funds, and quoted Venezuela Red Cross leader Louis Farias, who said that their chapter’s call for help “didn’t get the backing [they] had hoped.”
The New York Times omitted other statements from the Red Cross organization that shed more light on the role the US has played. Francesco Rocca, president of the International Federation of the Red Cross, stated publicly last year that he believed that “political will” was behind the lack of funding for Venezuela. He said that there are some who wanted “to use the civilian population, their desperation, as a tool to destabilize the country.” Rocca pointed out that “it is easier to receive funds for Syria and even for Yemen.”
Later in the piece, the reporters cited economist Asdrúbal Oliveros, who claimed that “Mr. Maduro had simply chosen to prioritize the import of oil and food over medicine.” Oliveros believes the calculus was based on the fact that “pregnant women and sick people don’t protest—but that hungry people do.” No explanation was offered for why it’s Maduro’s fault that his administration has been forced to choose between essential resources for his country.
The piece merely calls Oliveros “one economist,” failing to disclose that he has been part of the Venezuelan opposition backing would-be president Juan Guaidó in an ongoing US-backed coup attempt against Maduro. Oliveros was described by the pro-Guaidó publication Americas Quarterly (4/18) as one of the “10 People Who Will (One Day) Rebuild Venezuela.”
Infant mortality in Venezuela continued a long-term decline after the election of Hugo Chavez in 1999—but began resurging in 2015, the year President Barack Obama first imposed sanctions on Venezuela (substantially toughened by Donald Trump in 2017). (Chart: Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis)
The New York Times and other elite media have played an important role in mobilizing the US public against the Maduro government. They have highlighted the very real hardships on the ground, while casting blame for them almost exclusively on the “authoritarian” Maduro government (which, despite media’s constant implications, won an internationally observed election with more than 4 million more votes over the president’s closest rival—FAIR.org, 5/10/19). They consistently downplay the role of US sanctions in contributing to the dire economic situation (FAIR.org, 2/6/19, 6/26/19, 3/25/20).
If the Times were concerned about the fate of the women it profiled, and the state of Venezuelan economy, the paper would direct its readers to the sources of instability for which they bear the most responsibility. US sanctions have decimated the Venezuelan economy, as was predicted by analysts when they were first imposed. One 2019 study from the Center for Economic Policy Research found that the sanctions had indirectly caused the deaths of 40,000. Portraying Maduro as the sole reason for the country’s crisis is factually incorrect and journalistically irresponsible.
Featured image: New York Times photo (4/10/20) of a pregnant woman seeking medical help at a Venezuelan hospital.
Maduro is doing a wonderful job considering that the United States has been undermining Venezuela since the prior President Chavez began his job. America is the land now, of accusations, but with no ideas how to fix things which they say are broken,
Venezuela also has oil–and as America is addicted to oil—all kinds of criminal things have been going on against the people of Venezuela and President Maduro. Oil addicted America is causing major problems for the planet———- and please remember that warring is bad for People and planet. And besides —-war is really bad for the taxpayers!
What a short-sided, superficial, IGNORANT opinion about modern Venezuela.
Venezuela has been under threat from infant and adult starvation, murderous FAES death squads and government-backed violent factions of El Colectivo, NO legislative branch of government (Maduro declared the legislature “null and void”) when the Venezuelan people voted an OPPOSITION SUPERMAJORITY into the National Assembly in 2015, and the list seriously goes on and on…
This article is essentially spitting in the face of Venezuelans that have extremely suffered under the Cuban/Chavista murder kleptocracy for DECADES.
DECADES.
Not years (the PDVSA sanctions started in 2019).
Its totally obvious to me that the guy writing this article has NEVER been to Venezuela and probably has never even met a Venezuelan.
Except maybe the enchufado Chavista cutting his checks for
writing this stuff
What disrespect you’re showing the kidnapped, raped, tortured and MURDERED Venezuelas that have suffered under the Cuban/Chavista kleptocracy FOR DECADES.
LONG BEFORE the PDVSA sanctions that only recently went into effect in 2019.
The writer “Bryce Greene” is SUPER IGNORANT about Venezuela under the Chavista murder kleptocracy.
Shame on you AND him.
Brian. read your U.S. history, and The Monroe Doctrine too. Chavez used oil to supply heating oil to poor Americans—did you know that? Chavez actually helped to create a middle class in Venezuela—he had Venezuela control their own oil—which is a horror to America–imagine that another nation wanting to control its own Natural Resources- Brian, you’re yelling about Cuba too. Why?The great thing about Cuba is that they send DOCTORS to war zones, instead of soldiers—- which apparently makes many in the American government angry.
And Mr. Pompeo, always so angry —-and considering his religious beliefs—-what would Jesus say about him? Just wondering….
YOU’RE SO WRONG MADURO AND HIS PREDECESOR HUGO CHAVEZ has all the blame for health care crisis for the following reasons
1- the deterioration of the health care system is occurring since 1999 way before the US SACTIONS
2- the systematic curruption, embezzelment of money is occuring between Venezuelan goverment and corrupt Venezuelan business men.
before writing nonsense I recommend you to investigate, because clearly yo don’t have. any clues of what is happening in Venezuela
So the infant mortality statistics over time don’t phase you at all. We are all just supposed to believe your assertion.
The NYT article was accurate and correct. US sanctions are not responsible the terrible state of public services in Venezuela and the staggering decline in exports. Indeed, the US was supporting the Venezuelan economy until 2019, trading with Venezuela, including the Chavez/Maduro regime, to the maximum possible extent. The damage was done years – decades – before sanctions were imposed. The Venezuelan regime is responsible for Venezuela. Nobody else.
HERE HERE!!!
DOWN WITH THE CUBAN/CHAVISTA MURDER KLEPTOCRACY
Oh come-on Elkan & BRIAN – get serious!! Can’t you even read the simple graph in the article? Or recall the 600+ CIA plots against Fidel Castro, or more currently the $15 million ‘bounty’ that Trump recently put up for the removal of Maduro? Do those sound like the actions of a benevolent or even neutral actor. No, they’re the actions of the country who’s stated purpose for imposing sanctions is to overthrow the democratically elected government of Venezuela as well as Cuba and Nicaragua. Are you just a couple of Guaidó hacks/trolls trying to be ‘clever’, or are you just rich spoiled Venezuelan boys?
Hello Eddie S,
I am neither rich nor spoiled nor Venezuelan. Nor do I applaud the foreign policy of the US. But it is irrelevant to Venezuela. It is easy for the regime to blame others for the misfortune of its people. It is a fascist regime. Neither statistics nor rhetoric can hide that.
NYT has always been a fifth rate propaganda rag. I used to subscribe but it was just a waste of time and money filled with propaganda or boring lifestyle articles catering to their upper middle class readership.
Boy, talk about propaganda and cherry picking desired facts regarding modern Venezuela to fit a desired narrative. Here’s a country that has encountered starvation – by its own making – relative to the entire population, other than Maduro’s goons. Then we have his death squads, totally out of control, broad based crime and some of the highest murder rates in the world, with an inflation rate to match. Lets be clear: there is no elected legislative branch of government (Maduro deemed the legislature null and void after the Venezuelan people voted in 2015). Any honest point of view would determine that the economic damage and destruction was conducted over decades – well before before sanctions were imposed, just a couple of years ago. The Venezuelan regime is squandering the largest proven oil reserves in the world with their incompetence. Very recently, the Russians even pulled out in assisting them to rebuild their economy. The list goes on of course but at the end of the day the current regime is responsible for the current state of Venezuela – nobody else.
When you bar all other countries & international banks from doing business with Maduro’s government, at the threat of military force, as the US has done, it is literally foolish to pretend that the Maduro government “squandered its resources”.