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New TV station begins broadcasts in Latin America

A new TV station backed by Venezuela's government began transmitting on Sunday in various countries across Latin America, carrying praise by Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez, American actor Danny Glover and others.

The Telesur network, which organizers call a Latin alternative to large media outlets like CNN, was being seen in Argentina, Uruguay, Bolivia, Brazil and Cuba as well as Venezuela, Chavez said.

"This is part of an awakening of our peoples," he said by phone to a televised inaugural ceremony in Caracas. Chavez called the channel a key step toward regional integration, with the sole purpose of "telling the truth."

The station, funded by Venezuela and also backed by Argentina, Uruguay and Cuba, has drawn concern in the US Congress, where House members last week approved a measure to transmit radio and TV broadcasts to Venezuela to ensure citizens receive "accurate news."

Chavez has called the US plan ridiculous and has said Venezuela is prepared to jam the broadcasts. He also said Venezuela would prevent any signals from interfering with Telesur's programs.

Some critics call Telesur a way to spread anti-American propaganda -- an accusation strongly denied by Venezuelan Information Minister Andres Izarra, the station's president.

"It's an initiative against imperialism," he said during the televised ceremony. "That should not be interpreted, however, as an initiative against the American people."

The station, headquartered in Caracas, is to offer news programs, opinion shows, documentaries and Latin American films. It is to be on the air four hours a day at first, and eventually 24 hours a day. Test transmissions began two months ago.

Some in Colombia have already expressed concern about promotional footage that used a protest scene in which Colombian rebel leader Manuel Marulanda briefly appeared. But director Aram Aharonian of Uruguay has brushed aside such criticism, saying the channel will support independent journalism.

"Telesur has an enormous responsibility," said Glover, a station board member who attended the ceremony.

He said it has key roles integrating the region and acting as a counterbalance to the "giant to the north."

Other advisory board members include Nobel Peace Prize winner Adolfo Perez Esquivel and Uruguayan writer Eduardo Galeano.
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