14/05/2008
Media Continues to Treat Unsubstantiated Allegations as Facts
By Greg Grandin and Forrest Hylton *

On April 25, twenty-one Latin America scholars released this letter (reprinted below) to the media with regard to the documents allegedly recovered from a laptop captured from Colombian guerrillas. Although some newspapers, including the Miami Herald, cited our warning, it nonetheless has proven to be all too prescient. Much of the media, even before any statement was released from Interpol, has continued to treat unsubstantiated allegations as facts. For example, a May 9 Wall Street Journal article stated: "The documents suggest Mr. Chavez is personally involved in helping the guerrillas."
 
We once again appeal to the media for objectivity, and to treat unsubstantiated allegations the same way they would treat such allegations if they were made against the United States government -- i.e. to have some standards of evidence. Interpol cannot and will not verify the validity of any charges made against the Venezuelan government.. There are as yet no allegations that would hold up in a court of law.

Over the last month, the Colombian government's strategy has involved a media campaign with timed leaks of new documents to the New York Times, the Wall Street Journal, the Miami Herald and other outlets, many of whom relied on the Colombian interpretation of their meaning, and with little acknowledgement of the deep controversy surrounding them.

Even if the documents were indeed produced by the FARC, this does not mean that the information is accurate. As Adam Isacson of the Center for International Policy, who has analyzed the documents, noted, "We are forced to rely on accounts from far-flung guerrilla leaders who have a strong incentive to portray their overtures to Venezuela as successful. For the FARC, getting material support from Caracas was probably the main benefit they hoped to win from these contacts, so anything that even appeared to hint at progress toward getting arms or cash was prominently reported, possibly in an exaggerated way."

The Interpol investigation cannot and will not confirm the veracity of the documents. We once again appeal to journalists and editors to distinguish between facts and allegations and to make that distinction more clear to their readers.

Sincerely,

*Greg Grandin, New York University - Professor of History
(212) 998-3534

*Forrest Hylton, New York University - Department of History
(718) 366-9182

¦ Main Page ¦