The Foreign Press Coverage – Falling Short

Three hundred and sixty days of the year the international press ignores Bolivia altogether. Then the country erupts, as it has this week, into a full-blown political crisis and the foreign press rushes to explain events here. How are they doing? Unfortunately not so well.

If you scan the major articles published this week one trend becomes pretty clear. As a national debate over gas privatization rages here, the foreign press has pretty much abandoned the work of serious analysis and paints that debate as one pitting sober experts on the one side and raving protesters on the other. Take a look:

The New York Times

The Times’ Juan Forero is generally a thorough reporter (and a fine writer as well). The best of the lot, the Times piece on Tuesday still falls square into the “experts vs. protesters” trap.

On one side the Times quotes a former Bolivian vice minister who now consults for energy firms: Companies have found gas reserves but have not had the conditions to even think of developing them. It is difficult to see how this sector will grow and develop. It quotes Brazil's minister of mines and energy: Approval of the hydrocarbons law will without a doubt entail serious difficulties for Brazilian investments in Bolivia. It quotes the president of Repsol in Bolivia, warning that the new gas law would: force us to abandon many gas fields.

On the other side the Times quotes a MAS Congressman: We are going to fight against this law. The marches have to continue because in Congress, not all the senators and deputies defend the people. Sometimes they defend the multinationals. It quotes a leader of the El Alto community groups: We say yes to nationalization of the hydrocarbons.

The Times coverage makes the debate seem like it is experts vs. placards.

Bloomberg

The New York-based business news service quotes the president of the Bolivian Chamber of Commerce for gas and oil: This means Bolivia distances itself from the investment circuit and the major potential for trade and projects with neighboring countries. The country is the big loser today. Then it reaches to Scotland to find an oil and gas expert at ING Financial Markets: Taxation is not at a reasonable level and long-term investment must be questioned.

From the other side the best Bloomberg could do was lift a quote they heard on a Lima, Peru radio station from MAS leader Evo Morales: The situation has become tense once more because the government continues to serve the multi-national companies. Congress must change this law, because it doesn't favor the Bolivian people.

Once again, experts vs. political rhetoric.

Reuters

The self-proclaimed “leading source of World News” took the minimalist approach to the Bolivian gas uprising. It quotes “The U.S. government” [whomever that was] saying that Bolivia’s new energy bill: would ‘inhibit’ foreign investment. It then quotes an El Alto labor leader saying: We are demanding nationalization of our hydrocarbons without compensation (for companies). Not exactly deep or informative analysis.

AP

The Associated Press went more minimalist still. It quotes the Brazilian Energy and Mines minister warning: This new law will certainly lead to changes in Petrobras' investment strategy in Bolivia. The company will reduce investment expansion plans. AP couldn’t be bothered to contact any Bolivians for their story at all.

What Happened to Serious Analysis?

The fact is that, beneath all the drama of protesters in the streets and a government on the brink, there is a serious policy debate at hand. Should Bolivia seize back control of its oil and gas? Can a poor country make the economics of oil and gas work more to its advantage without foreign corporations in the driver seat? Is a 50/50 split with foreign corporations extravagant or just plain fair?

There are two sides to this debate and all these reports have missed the boat in providing a real analysis and fail as well to reach beyond the social movements’ street rhetoric to the serious expertise that backs their position.
If the foreign press wants to interview Bolivian experts who know their stuff on the gas issue here’s two:

Roberto Fernandez Terán: An economist at the University of San Simon in Cochabamba, Roberto is the author of an important book on the role of the IMF and the World Bank in Bolivia (The IMF, the World Bank and the Neocolonial State, Plural Press). He has also spent a good portion of the last year digging through the details of Bolivia’s dealings with foreign oil corporations.

Carlos Villegas Quiroga: Another respected Bolivian academic who is author of a seriously researched history and analysis of Bolivia’s experience with gas privatization, Privatization of the Petroleum Industry in Bolivia (Plural Press).

A note to foreign reporters: You don’t have to call Scotland to get the story on the Bolivian gas debate and you don’t have to limit your coverage of the debate to slogans shouted in the street. You owe your readers better.