So today’s contest is to see just how long it takes for English language media to mention the name “Hugo Chávez” in its report about the Bolivian presidential election won yesterday by Evo Morales.
Reuters manages to last out a full 30 lines before Chávez’s name pops up.
Wall St Journal?: Line 17
Christian Science Monitor doesn’t beat about the bush and gets its Chávez mention in line two. Dumbasses.
Over at The Guardian ROOOORY tries his best, but caves in on line 43 (probably because he couldn’t be arsed to fly to Bolivia and filed from Caracas).
The Daily Telegraph: Line 24
Disassociated Press’s Bajak tries his hardest but cracks on line 57
But the winner is Bloomberg’s Jonathan Levin, who actually managed to file a report on the election without mentioning Chávez or Venezuela at all.
It might sound weird to you, but the election was in Bolivia, the candidates were Bolivian, the issues were Bolivian and the voters were Bolivian. Out of all the English language dross and pap written on the vote, only one English language reporter had the common decency and respect to keep it local. I mean, would you find it strange to hear about Gordon Brown’s role in Obama’s election victory, or how Sarkozy’s win was affected by Merkel?
Yours, sick to the back teeth by English media reporting of LatAm, Otto.