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Internet, a Weapon to Destroy Communication Monopolies

=== | 07.11.2004 21:18 | Indymedia

Fidel Castro: "Internet, a Weapon to Destroy Communication Monopolies"

During a meeting with Cuban journalists in Havana, the revolutionary leader said public opinion was the "key tool" to stop the war in Iraq. Castro believes that media monopolies manipulate people's minds, but Internet could play a decisive role to offset media power. The idea, to organize the anti-war movement from the cyberspace.



Castro also emphasized on the importance of the US public opinion as the decisive factor to stop White House imperial advance across the globe. "The 'Americans' have to play a decisive role by assessing the images they get from the TV about the bombings to the Arab country (Iraq)", said Castro.

The Cuban President is sure that anti-war demonstrations will finally stop the bellicose US approach to global problems. "The White House only cares about the internal opinion polls and dismiss world's position", he added.

As for the Internet, Castro said it was an extraordinary weapon to "stop the cultural invasion" and could lead to the "final victory" of the global public opinion. "There is another battle underway, a battle of ideas to offset the perils of new doctrines previously unknown", emphasized Castro.

On Castro's view, the mobilizations against the war are even more remarkable since political parties have not organized them.

The President of Cuba also said during the long speech that the communication through the cyberspace calls for a redefinition of new strategies in the communication field. "Thanks to Internet, the transnational communication monopolies disappear, as long as it is not necessary to ask them to put out information".

"New technologies have destroyed information monopolies, one of the key weapons of the imperial domination", concluded Castro in a very interesting speech at Havana's journalists meeting.

Hernan Etchaleco
PRAVDA.Ru
Argentina



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- Homepage: http://english.pravda.ru/war/2003/03/26/45104.html

Comments

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staggering hypocrisy

08.11.2004 01:23

I hope whoever posted this is aware of the deep irony in Castro's words given how use of the internet is tightly restricted in Cuba.

(  http://web.amnesty.org/library/Index/ENGAMR250032004 )

That said, it is true, the internet IS now an essential tool to countereact the falsehoods and illusions constantly disseminated by the mainstream media. There may be a lot of garbage out there but it's always better to have too many viewpoints rather than too few.

Andrew