Venezuela anger at 'mocking' Colombia soap opera

[Twisteruk]

Venezuela has told a private TV company to stop showing a Colombian soap opera it says is insulting to the country.

Chepe Fortuna stars a character called Colombia and her sister Venezuela, who owns a dog called Little Hugo, the same name as Venezuelan leader Hugo Chavez.

In one episode Venezuela loses Little Hugo, prompting Colombia to tell her she is better off without him.

The spat comes as the countries are making efforts to improve their historically strained relationship.

They restored relations last August, shortly after President Juan Manuel Santos took office in Colombia.

Venezuela's telecommunications regulator Conatel said the secretary character named Venezuela was "repeatedly characterised as associated with crime, interference and vulgarity".


Producer, Chepe Fortuna
Her gossipy and unscrupulous manner, it said, showed "the shameless manipulation of the plot to demoralise the Venezuelan people".

Conatel ordered the Televen channel to take the programme off air on Thursday night. The channel has not yet commented on the demands.

But the show's producer, Miguel Angel Baquero, denied the programme was promoting political intolerance.

"It is a folkloric tradition with the sole intention of entertaining the people and showing how the humour of the people of Colombia's coast lets two sisters be called Colombia and Venezuela," he said in a statement.

It is not the first time Televen has come under fire from the authorities.

In 2009 it was one of several countries ordered to stop showing episodes of the US cartoon Family Guy, over its apparent endorsement of the use of marijuana.

And in 2008, the channel was forced to broadcast public service films as a punishment after it broadcast episodes of The Simpsons - a cartoon the authorities consider inappropriate for children - in the morning.

Mr Chavez maintains tight control over the media in Venezuela - opposition groups accuse him of trying prevent coverage of political discontent.

[Twisteruk]

Whats your opinion on the Vic ?

[VLS]

Ah! I barely watch national TV.

I'm more of a FOX/NBC and other north-american chains

With the kind of direct insults to the president you see on air regularly at the opposition's channels one really can have a hard time believing Chavez is opposing openness in opinions or not  allowing for freedom of speech.

For instance, if someone calls chavez a dog at an opinion program, that's his/her opinion. Worse things they've said about him on air.

Perhaps the gist of the matter is those ones are political opinion programs while this is a soap opera, and standards must differ. In such a case, that goes beyond the scope of a political opinion and being mass media it goes more for "indoctrination" of some sorts.

Regards.

[iggiv]

i am not a big fan of Chavez, but leaving a palace for flood victims to live himself in a tent....
it did impress me. Maybe it was just for the media, i don't know.

but i have never heard anything like this before

[ThomasGrant]

I like Hugo...
Especially after watching the documentary.
"The revolution will not be televised"
link:://video.google.com.au/videoplay?docid=5832390545689805144#

I know he can seem a bit crazy at times.
But I find him extremely intelligent.
The people seem to like him.
One of the most popular presidents of our time.
Well popular to the people of Venezuela.
Well to be more accurate...
Popular to the poor people of Venezuela.

Man of the people.

Not man to the corporations like many of the US presidents have been.

Stick it to em Hugo...

[ThomasGrant]

I am not a big fan of Chavez, but leaving a palace for flood victims to live himself in a tent....
it did impress me. Maybe it was just for the media, I don't know.

but I have never heard anything like this before

link:://:.b92.net/eng/news/world-article.php?yyyy=2010&mm=12&dd=11&nav_id=71455

You don't see President Obama doing things like this.
Though he is a little better than the last president.