Independent journalist Camila Acosta is the target of a new campaign on Cuban state-run television to discredit her for reporting the truth about the Castro dictatorship. This is socialism in action.
Via Periodico Cubano (my translation):
Cuban television attempts to discredit independent journalist Camila Acosta
On Saturday, Cuban television revealed a private phone conversation between independent journalist Camila Acosta and America Tevé reporter Nelson Rubio during one of Humberto Lopez’s already classic segments.
Violating all ethical norms and laws established by the dictatorship itself, the main spokesperson of the Castro regime fabricated a false conspiracy of a supposed new political and media operation against Cuba, which would take place in Brussels during the European Union’s CELAC Summit.
In his presentation, López distorted the journalistic material Nelson Rubio and Camila Acosta were preparing, with Rubio based in Miami and Acosta in Havana. These reporters recorded a brief telephone interview on July 11 in which Acosta responded to and denounced the arbitrary acts of the regime in Havana with the intention of publishing it on July 17 during the summit events, as if it were a live broadcast.
It is worth noting that this type of content is frequently prepared in advance by all news networks, agencies, and channels. Therefore, the format does not go against the general norms of journalism.
On the other hand, recording personal phone calls without the consent of those involved does constitute a violation of privacy, as basic as invading private property or personal mail.
In this particular case, the collusion of State journalist Humberto López with the State Security organs to discredit Camila Acosta and other opposition figures in exile is evident. The access and public broadcasting of such a conversation on national television are only granted by the highest levels of the country’s military counterintelligence.
From the dictatorship’s side, these events are distorted, and in a demagogic manner, they attempt to present a completely different image to the Cuban audience, using carefully selected words and epithets such as mercenary, spokesperson, counterrevolutionary, and anti-Cuban.
The tactic does not surprise the Cuban audience, which has already witnessed violations of the privacy of opposition figures in previous programs: Yunior García, Jose Daniel Ferrer, and Guillermo “Coco” Fariñas are some of the most recent cases.
Camila Acosta, who is currently working as a journalist for Cubanet, responded through her personal Twitter profile, stating that “It is common in those media outlets to pre-record interviews or programs and then air them as if they were live.” She also affirmed that the regime’s campaign to discredit her is not coincidental and that Cuban State Security has been trying for years to build a “legal case that would allow them to imprison me. They have attempted to do so for 4 years: fining me, confiscating my equipment…” concluded the journalist.
“Most people are unaware of this, but those of us who have worked in radio or television understand it better. It is common in those media outlets to pre-record interviews or programs and then air them as if they were live.”