High-wire fences protect the outside from projectiles. Inside, the boss keeps a gas-mask, bullet-proof vest and pillow in his office in case of trouble. Venezuela's main pro-opposition broadcaster Globovision operates from its cramped offices with a siege mentality after years of conflict with President Hugo Chavez and his backers.
"There is a history of trouble, from grenades which almost burned down the station, to destruction of vehicles, physical aggression against reporters and threats to directors," Globovision's director Alberto Ravell said in an interview. In the latest physical attack, a pro-Chavez mob stormed the station in early August, launching tear gas grenades and terrifying employees.
The government, which says Globovision is the true aggressor thanks to its subversive views and "lunatic" director, this month launched yet another legal case against it for airing messages about coup rumours. The government-Globovision disputes are just one of many tension points in the South American nation where Chavez is pushing a socialist "revolution" that supporters say is led by the people but critics say is stamping on democracy.
Ravell, one of Globovision's founders in 1994 - about the time former paratrooper Chavez was in jail for a coup attempt - says that despite a handful of ongoing legal processes, the station's future depends on the president's whim. "If you add up all the cases, processes and investigations against us, we've had about 60 - six still pending," he said. "We have even had investigations for reporting an earthquake!"
Despite Globovision's aggressive, anti-government reporting, news-heavy programming and well-groomed presenters, it struggles for ratings among Venezuelans who prefer the frothy soaps and lifestyle shows crowding other airwaves. But its role as a platform for activists and as a Chavez irritant make it a big political player.
Though he hates Globovision, Chavez knows its existence is a powerful argument against critics. "If he gets really cross, he may close us. But remember we are a sort of trophy for the government ... so he can say there's freedom of expression." Ravell was open about Globovision's editorial line. "We try and be as balanced as possible, but I don't deny we have a heart and we have never liked the current president," he said. "Globovision is an opposition channel: we oppose corruption, communism, failing services."
As part of the government's campaign against private media outlets it says are biased, Venezuela's oldest private station, RCTV, lost its concession in 2007 and dozens of radio stations have also closed. Globovision's 450 employees, especially reporters, have become cautious to avoid giving an excuse for closure, Ravell said.
He cited the case of a pregnant anchorwoman who felt the studio shake on a recent Saturday but made scant reference to the event. It turned out to be a 6.2 magnitude earthquake. Ravell said the loyalty shown to Globovision by opposition supporters, who often wear hats and T-shirts with the station's logo, was in part due to the president's public attacks.
"We owe the growth of this channel to the professionalism of the people who work here, and to a person who has been our great promoter, publicist and P.R. chief: Hugo Chavez Frias." With close ties to opposition leaders, Ravell said they must unite to have a chance of denting Chavez's 10-year-rule and near-50 percent popularity ratings rooted in Venezuela's poor majority.
"The opposition leaders are not facing the nation united, they are not taking advantage of the government's weaknesses," he said. "Opposition leaders are not made in a TV studio. They have to make contact with people, climb the hills to poor neighbourhoods, find out what the problems are." Having used charisma and genuine popularity to take power, Chavez was now losing his touch, Ravell said.
"The real leader of the opposition is President Chavez. He doesn't take care of the country's problems, he travels constantly, he keeps bad company, he gives away Venezuelans' patrimony. For Chavez, it's more important to inaugurate a hospital in Iran than fix a hospital at home."
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