Latin Pulse

Coming remotely from Caracas, Venezuela, this week Latin Pulse focuses on the prospects for the government of President Nicolas Maduro and issues of free speech in the country.    The program features the views of a Venezuelan journalist and a political expert. The discussion ranges from government pressure on the media to the differing political currents in post-Chavez Venezuela and what lies ahead for the politically polarized country.   The program also includes discussion of corruption in Venezuela. The news segment of the program covers the passage of major educational reforms in Mexico. The program includes in-depth interviews with: Jesus Alberto Yajure of Cadena Capriles; and Alejandro Velasco of New York University. Executive Producer: Rick Rockwell Associate Producer: Curt Devine and Writer: Megan Ekhaml. (To download or stream this podcast, click here.)  (The program is 30 minutes in length and the file size is 28 MB.)   podcast news Latin America Venezuela Hugo Chavez Nicolas Maduro Mexico education reforms media free speech censorship coup violence Diosdado Cabello violence elections politics corruptioncrime Enrique Pena Nieto Henrique Capriles Radonski oil democracy authoritarianism

Violence, both in the present context and in memory is the key concern this week on Latin Pulse.  The program looks at measures to militarize the police in Honduras as that country grapples with the worst homicide rate in the world.  The discussion includes human rights concerns, conditions in the Honduran prisons, and the crisis of the lack of governmental control in the country.  The program also discusses the 40th anniversary of the coup in Chile that brought Gen. Augusto Pinochet to power in 1973.  The news segment of the program covers protests over agricultural policies and trade in Colombia. The program includes in-depth interviews with: Adriana Beltran of the Washington Office on Latin America (WOLA); and Rev. Joe Eldridge of American University. Executive Producer: Rick Rockwell Associate Producer: Curt Devine. (To download or stream this podcast, click here.)  (The program is 30 minutes in length and the file size is 28 MB.)   podcast news Latin America Chile protest movements United States Honduras Colombia agriculture trade drug cartels coup police espionage Drug War Barrio 18 prisons violence gangs military protests Juan Manuel Santos human rights MS-13 Central America  Porfirio Lobo Orlando Letelier Juan Orlando Hernandez Salvador Allende maras OAS homicide justice elections imperialism intelligence services torture political prisoners politics protests Richard Nixon Henry Kissinger religion and politics militarization Augusto Pinochet corruption

Espionage and the fallout from the Edward Snowden case are resonating through Latin America and Latin Pulse looks closely at the issues.  The program focuses on the conflicts between espionage and diplomacy in the region including more reactions from Brazil this week to the spying revelations.  The program also looks at the proposed energy and oil reforms under consideration in Mexico.   The news segment of the program reviews the decision in Ecuador to open the Yasuni region to oil drilling.  The program also includes a commentary about marijuana legalization in Uruguay. The program includes in-depth interviews with: Fulton Armstrong of the Center for Latin America & Latino Studies (CLALS) at American University; and Duncan Wood of the Mexico Institute of the Woodrow Wilson Center. Executive Producer: Rick Rockwell Associate Producer: Alexia Campbell. (To download or stream this podcast, click here.)  (The program is 30 minutes in length and the file size is 28 MB.)   podcast news Latin America Venezuela John Kerry United States Ecuador diplomacy politics media Edward Snowden Russia Brazil espionage Rafael Correa Yasuni Park oil environment environmentalism NSA protests U.S. State Department The Amazon Cuba Ricardo Martinelli  North Korea United Nations Enrique Pena Nieto Cuauhtemoc Cardenas energy Mexico business economics Canada NAFTA Lazaro Cardenas PRI

The death of Hugo Chavez is again under the microscope this week as Latin Pulse looks at conspiracy theories in Latin America.  The program includes an interview with a medical expert about allegations Chavez was poisoned.  The discussion also delves into how populist leaders sometimes use conspiracy theories to communicate and connect with their supporters. The news segment of the program covers the visit of U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry to South America and how countries there confronted him with their negative reactions to the espionage programs unveiled by Edward Snowden, a former contractor working for U.S. intelligence agencies. The program includes in-depth interviews with: Carlos de la Torre of the University of Kentucky; and Dr. Ronald Goans of Tulane University & the U.S. Dept. of Energy at Oak Ridge. Executive Producer: Rick Rockwell Associate Producer: Curt Devine. (To download or stream this podcast, click here.)  (The program is 30 minutes in length and the file size is 28 MB.)   podcast news Latin America Nicolas Maduro Venezuela justice John Kerry United States elections Colombia Ecuador Bolivia diplomacy politics media courts Edward Snowden George W. Bush Barack Obama Evo Morales  Russia Hugo Chavez Rafael Correa polonium 210 Brazil populism espionage Yasser Arafat conspiracy cancer imperialism oligarchies poisoning assassination indigenous issues health issues coup Alexander Litvinenko

Venezuela's Supreme Court thrust that country back into the limelight this week, deciding there will be no appeal to the close election results of spring's controversial elections. This week, Latin Pulse uses that decision to return to Venezuelan politics.  The program delves into voter fraud and coercion in Venezuela.  The program also looks at the aftereffects of the Edward Snowden affair and what it has meant to the evolving diplomatic context in Latin America.  The program tracks how the Obama administration's approach to Snowden has affected relations with more than Venezuela, but also Bolivia, Nicaragua and Ecuador. The program includes in-depth interviews with: Michael McCarthy of Johns Hopkins University; and Peter Hakim of the Inter-American Dialogue. Executive Producer: Rick Rockwell Production Assistant: Alexia Campbell Associate Producer: Curt Devine. (To download or stream this podcast, click here.)  (The program is 30 minutes in length and the file size is 28 MB.)   podcast news Latin America Nicolas Maduro Venezuela justice voter fraud voter intimidation elections Venezuelan Supreme Court Henrique Capriles Radonski politics media courts electoral authority CNE Colombia Ecuador Bolivia Nicaragua Edward Snowden Vladimir Putin Barack Obama United States  Evo Morales  Russia John Kerry diplomacy Hugo Chavez Joe Biden Rafael Correa economics

Uruguay electrified the global debate concerning the Drug War this week, as its Chamber of Deputies approved a law that would make the country the first in the world to completely legalize the use and distribution of the drug.  This week, Latin Pulse concentrates on the progressive trends in Uruguay.  Beyond liberalizing marijuana laws, the discussion also covers the debates over abortion and same-sex marriage in Uruguay.  This program also concludes the three-part series of discussions with Uruguay's human rights ombudsman. The program includes in-depth interviews with: Gabriela Santini of Uruguay's Teledoce; and Juan Raul Ferreira, the Human Rights Ombudsman of Uruguay. Executive Producer: Rick Rockwell Production Assistant: Alexia Campbell Associate Producer: Curt Devine. (To download or stream this podcast, click here.)  (The program is 30 minutes in length and the file size is 28 MB.)   podcast news Latin America drug legalization Uruguay Brazil Jose Mujica Drug War marijuana rule of law Mexico politics abortion violence Catholic Church women's rights gender issues LGBT issues OAS Organization of American States prisons crime human rights  Tabare Vazquez  same-sex marriage prison conditions organized crime civil society Frente Amplio Cuba Argentina gender equality minority issues

Pope Francis and his trip to Brazil are the primary focus of Latin Pulse this week.  The pope has focused his trip around poverty and social justice, but this program also deals with various controversial issues including:  the Vatican bank's corruption scandal; calls to modernize the Church's positions on birth control and on the role of women in Catholicism.  The program also covers the reaction of Brazil's protest movement to the visit.  A commentary on the program deals with how Brazil's President Dilma Rousseff has failed so far to completely calm her country's protest movement. The program includes in-depth interviews with: Father Thomas Reese, Senior Analyst for the National Catholic Reporter; and Monsignor Kevin Irwin of The Catholic University of America. Executive Producer: Rick Rockwell Associate Producer: Curt Devine. (To download or stream this podcast, click here.)  (The program is 30 minutes in length and the file size is 28 MB.)   podcast news Latin America drug legalization media Brazil Pope Francis protest movement poverty Pope Benedict XVI protests corruption Catholicism religion The Vatican liberation theology evangelization World Youth Day scandal globalization women's rights gender issues Vatican bank  Catholic Church 

Latin Pulse looks forward this week to the upcoming trip to Brazil by Pope Francis.  The discussion revolves around the symbolic importance of this trip as the first pope from Latin America returns to the region for his first international trip as pope. The program discusses the competition between Catholicism and evangelical Protestants in Brazil and elsewhere in Latin America.  The program also discusses the various initiatives Pope Francis has undertaken this year.  The news segment covers the discovery this week of a North Korean freighter, which unsuccessfully tried to traverse the Panama Canal, laden with arms from Cuba. The program includes in-depth interviews with: Tom Quigley, formerly of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops; and Andrew Chesnut of Virginia Commonwealth University. Executive Producer: Rick Rockwell Associate Producer: Curt Devine. (To download or stream this podcast, click here.)  (The program is 30 minutes in length and the file size is 42 MB.)   podcast news Latin America Panama Canal Cuba Brazil Pope Francis protest movement weapons smuggling Argentina Panama embargo religion North Korea  Catholicism protests poverty Pope Benedict XVI evangelicals pentecostalism charistmatic Catholics The Vatican immigration Pope John Paul II Pope John XXIII Sean O'Malley Oscar Andres Rodriguez Maradiaga corruption evangelization liberation theology World Youth Day human rights

For a summer change of pace, this week Latin Pulse travels to New York City for the Latin Alternative Music Conference (LAMC).  The program explores both musical and cultural issues linked to the conference, and highlights music from various countries and regions including: Mexico, Argentina, Panama, and Puerto Rico.  The program traces the roots of alternative music from salsa through rock and rap.  The news segment covers the latest complaints from Latin American governments regarding the revelations of Edward Snowden regarding NSA spying on various governments in the region. The program includes in-depth interviews with: Felix Contreras & Jasmine Garsd of NPR's Alt.Latino. The program also includes shorter sound clips from artists:  Ruben Blades & Carla Morrison. Executive Producer: Rick Rockwell Associate Producer: Curt Devine. (To download or stream this podcast, click here.) (For a complete list of song excerpts used in this podcast, click here.)  (The program is 30 minutes in length and the file size is 42 MB.)   podcast news Latin America Edward Snowden espionage Brazil Puerto Rico alternative music Venezuela Mexico Argentina Panama salsa rock gender issues  rap globalization music Afro-Latin American culture culture Torreblanca Xenia Rubinos Natalia Clavier Carla Morrison Calle 13 Ruben Blades Bosnian Rainbows Mars Volta LAMC

Freedom and democracy are key themes this week on Latin Pulse. The struggle for freedom in Cuba is the subject of a special in-depth report on this program that looks at how dissidents are using the internet and technology to oppose the government of Raul Castro. Advances in democracy underline the discussion of elections and politics in Chile.  The program looks at the political scene in Chile after the primary win of former President Michelle Bachelet as she attempts to return to power.  The news segment covers the latest diplomatic maneuvers in Latin America regarding Edward Snowden who revealed the depth of NSA domestic spying. The program includes an in-depth interview with: Lois Hecht Oppenheim of American Jewish University. The program also includes interviews with:  Ted Henken of Baruch College of City University of New York; Antonio Rodiles of Estado de SATS; and Mary Long of the University of Colorado. Executive Producer: Rick Rockwell Associate Producer: Curt Devine. (To download or stream this podcast, click here.)  (The program is 30 minutes in length and the file size is 28 MB.)   podcast news Latin America Edward Snowden Bolivia Joe Biden Evo Morales Cuba diplomacy democracy Chile internet media Rafael Correa  poverty protests espionage reforms coup politics elections student protests Michelle Bachelet Ecuador NSA asylum espionage protests Pablo Longueira Raul Castro Augusto Pinochet Sebastian Pinera Alliance for Chile human rights dissidents Concertacion inequality repression free speech

Latin Pulse takes various paths this week to analyze several important issues arising during June.  The program includes a focus on the protests that have struck Brazil during the past month.  The driving forces behind these wide-ranging protests are complex and demonstrate the various policies that Brazilians want changed, including less corruption and less police brutality.  The other central focus of the program covers the diplomatic discussions between the United States and Venezuela to normalize relations between the countries.  The news segment covers the passage of immigration reform by the U.S. Senate. The program includes in-depth interviews with: Matt Taylor of American University; and David Smilde of the University of Georgia. Executive Producer: Rick Rockwell Associate Producer: Curt Devine. (To download or stream this podcast, click here.)  (The program is 30 minutes in length and the file size is 28 MB.)   podcast news Latin America United States Brazil Marco Rubio police brutality Cuba Venezuela immigration corruption Dilma Rousseff  Mexico protests espionage reforms coup diplomacy democracy sports infrastructure sports spending transportation infrastructure John Kerry Nicolas Maduro Henrique Capriles Edward Snowden politics elections Partido dos Trabalhadores Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva Workers Party Colombian peace process OAS Ecuador NSA asylum Colombia imperialism Juan Manuel Santos justice

This week, Latin Pulse commemorates the 40th anniversary of the coup in Uruguay with a retrospective and analysis of Operation Condor and how it had an effect on Uruguay and all of Latin America.  The program includes an interview with Uruguay's ombudsman for human rights who was a target of Operation Condor.  And the program explains how that secret assassination program is still relevant today.  The news segment covers the protests in Brazil that intensified this week concerning corruption and spending on infrastructure to support international sports contests. The program includes in-depth interviews with: Juan Raul Ferreira, the Human Rights Ombudsman of Uruguay; and John Dinges of Columbia University. Executive Producer: Rick Rockwell Associate Producer: Curt Devine Writer: Zach Cohen. (To download or stream this podcast, click here.)  (The program is 30 minutes in length and the file size is 28 MB.)   podcast news Latin America United States Uruguay Operation Condor human rights Cuba Argentina Brazil corruption Dilma Rousseff  terrorism protests espionage assassinations coup Chile Bolivia sports infrastructure sports spending Paraguay CIA church politics United Nations political dissidents Orlando Letelier national security Henry Kissinger politics torture U.S. State Department  dictators

Cuba is the central focus of Latin Pulse this week, with discussions of new diplomatic proposals and a new documentary about the island.  The debate about Cuba covers why the United States lists the country as a state sponsor of terrorism and how the two nations could move beyond their diplomatic deadlock.  The documentary preview includes views on the effects of the revolution and how race plays a key role in everyday Cuba.  The news segment discusses the recent railway tragedy in Argentina and the program also includes a commentary about China's trade and diplomacy with Latin America. The program includes in-depth interviews with: Andres Serbin of CRIES; and Bill Gentile of American University. Executive Producer: Rick Rockwell Associate Producer: Curt Devine Writer: Zach Cohen. (To download or stream this podcast, click here.)  (The program is 30 minutes in length and the file size is 28 MB.)   podcast news Latin America United States diplomacy political prisoners Alan Gross Cuba Argentina disaster documentaries Cuban Five  terrorism Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner  diplomacy transportation embargo commerce trade race Afro-Cuban issues Cuban Revolution poverty racism Fidel Castro

This week Latin Pulse focuses on the debate over the controversial gang truce in Honduras and what can be learned from the politics and conditions of a similar truce in El Salvador.  The truce is between the Honduran factions of the street gangs MS-13 and Barrio 18:  these gangs include tens of thousands of members in the United States and Central America.  Experts in Mexico and the United States weigh in on the truce and give important context. This week, the news segment of the program looks at the diplomatic breakthrough between the United States and Venezuela. The program includes in-depth interviews with: Sonja Wolf of INSYDE; and Jon Wolseth, author of Jesus and the Gang. Executive Producer: Rick Rockwell Associate Producer: Curt Devine Writer: Zach Cohen. (To download or stream this podcast, click here.)  (The program is 30 minutes in length and the file size is 28 MB.)   podcast news Latin America United States gang truce El Salvador Honduras gangs MS-13 violence Barack Obama  Central America  diplomacy Barrio 18 John Kerry  OAS Organization of American States  Bishop Romulo Emiliani  Barrio 18 Gang  Mara Salvatrucha 13  Nicolas Maduro Venezuela poverty Elias Jaua liberation theology  human rights Evangelicals rehabilitation prisons Ecuador crime politics Catholic Church Central America  corruption religion

This week Latin Pulse comes remotely from the annual Latin American Studies Association (LASA) Congress in Washington, D.C.  One of the key topics at the conference was reaction to the news of a truce between the MS-13 street gang, one of the most violent gangs in the world, and its primary competitor, the gang known as Barrio 18.  The program delves into the key role of the Catholic Church in brokering the truce and how both Catholicism and evangelical Christianity have played a role in countering gangs in Central America.  The program also looks at how politics and diplomacy regarding Honduras and the 2009 coup continue to resonate throughout the hemisphere.  The program includes in-depth interviews with: Bob Brenneman of St. Michael's College of Vermont; and Jorge Heine of Wilfrid Laurier University of Canada. Executive Producer: Rick Rockwell Associate Producer: Curt Devine Writer: Zach Cohen. (To download or stream this podcast, click here.)  (The program is 30 minutes in length and the file size is 28 MB.)   podcast news Latin America United States gang truce drug cartels Central America  El Salvador Honduras gangs MS-13 violence Catholics coup diplomacy Barrio 18 Drug War Barack Obama  Porfirio Lobo  John Kerry  Fernando Lugo Evangelicals drugs Guatemala Paraguay OAS Mercosur Joe Biden  Roberto Micheletti  Bishop Romulo Emiliani  U.S. State Department  Organization of American States  Barrio 18 Gang  religion Mara Salvatrucha 13  justice