Published by this weeks edition of El Tiempo Latino in Washington, D.C. in his new weekly feature Descubriendo Cuba.

FIDEL'S CHOICE (c) ABIP

by Agustin Blazquez with the collaboration of Jaums Sutton

As a good comrade, "Maximum Leader" Fidel Castro extended an invitation to friendly Ted and Jane's CNN to set up shop in his domain. No surprise - CNN has long been obedient of the aging tyrant. So much for fun with Ted (should I say Dick?) and Jane.

This discriminating reward for CNN's good behavior, hasn't been extended to other news organizations. But it set the process for getting permission from the US government. Curiously, it was the despised - by - Castro Senator Jesse Helms who finally gave the OK, clearing the way for Clinton's announcement on February 12, granting permission to CNN and nine other news organizations to open bureaus in Castroland. Rightfully, however, the Treasury Department's guidelines for licensing is that newsgathering should be "unconditional and unrestricted." Will Castro allow that?

Congressman Lincoln Diaz-Balart of Florida said, "This is not a step forward. This is simply a personal favor by Castro to his friend Ted Turner." And an additional voice for Castro to reach the US with his propaganda. Now that his favorite is in, will Castro allow any others?

From the list of grantees, one will surely meet Castro's approval: Johns Hopkins University's School of Advanced International Studies, because of his old buddy and apologist, Wayne Smith, who works there.

For years reporters have been given temporary visas to report the happenings in Castroland. However, the press has never explained or made an issue of the fact that each reporter allowed in Cuba is thoroughly investigated and a personal file with his inclinations and political beliefs is maintained and reported to Castro. Reporters aren't allowed in unless they are sympathetic or uninformed enough to swallow the propaganda and official (unverifiable) statistics they are fed. Usually they are newcomers ignorant of Cuba's past, eager to cooperate in order to get another visa to report from Cuba again, accumulating brownie points for that career coup: a one on one with Castro. It's a silent gentleman's agreement; in earthy terms: blackmail.

Reporters deviating from their expected good behavior, are swiftly expelled and forbidden to return to Castro's land of career opportunities. What stinks about the whole thing is that news organizations keep very quiet about the selling of their souls and don't make an issue of it when their reporters are expelled. The reason is: they don't want to lose accessibility to Cuba. But by cooperating, they are compromising freedom of information. That's why Americans generally are so misinformed about Cuba. The press is rendering a disservice.

Sources say that a particular foreign news agency has asked their Havana correspondent not to say anything that would upset Castro, to avoid being expelled.

Castro crushed the free press in Cuba in 1960. Recently, groups of independent journalists and news agencies were formed inside Cuba. Castro has been cracking down on them, too. How is he going to allow the US media to freely report from Cuba? Unless, of course, they collaborate once more with his blackmail for the prestige of being one of the selected ones in Havana.

What CNN and others will report remains to be seen.

Agustin Blazquez, Producer/Director of documentary COVERING CUBA http://www.rpi.edu/~pratsa/cuba/covering-cuba.html Home/Studio: 301-949-8791