The article chosen to analyze this assignment, “Castro Thanks U.S. in Speech But Reaffirms Communism” relates greatly to the course concepts in media and politics. This topic is newsworthy as it covers a topic that is of interest to the American public. The New York Times has been labeled as a “liberal” newspaper.
President Raul Castro is portrayed in the article as the victor in this highly contentious event. The political power narrative is framed by Castro who included favored guests, such as Elian Gonzalez (at the center of the battle of Cuban exiles and Havana in 2000) as well as other released Cuban spies at the televised speech that was intended to show a united front with the President at the forefront. It’s propaganda for a specific audience.
- Acknowledges that the normalizing of relations is the start of “a new chapter” but insists that it won’t have any impact on its authoritarian regime. This means that democratic spillover is not likely to happen.
- President Castro reiterates in a careful and calculated speech that there would be no concessions given up by Cuba in order to make good on its promises. These include the governance institutions and the leader stated that the Cuban political system would remain “prosperous and sustainable communism.” More importantly, he states that “We won the war.” This last statement is a domineering, not submissive message to the international world that it’s business as usual.
- The respect for sovereignty called for by President Castro is in line with authoritarian regimes such as Cuba (and China) and sends a message that it is not privy to being meddled with by external foreign forces such as the United States that are often blamed for destabilizing a nation’s stability by introducing democratic elements.
The takeaway for us is that this turn of events has generated massive discussion from both sides of the aisle. Republicans have criticized the President for what it sees as another failure to lead as the U.S. has exchanged several key Cuban spies and the termination of the trade embargo that has the extent of the foreign policy with Cuba. Many conservatives see this latest step as having given too much, given the opposing ideology of both countries that may not be compatible. Many are pessimistic that the Cuban leadership is focused on ameliorating the lives of its people. On the other hand, Democrats are ecstatic that the trade barriers between U.S. and Cuba are being dismantled and that the path to economic prosperity and freedom for Cuban citizens may finally be paved. While the real truth may lie somewhere between these two paths, the newspaper article demonstrates the variety of actors involved and shows that politics is infused in many aspects of our day to day affairs.
Works Cited
Cave, Damien. “Castro Thanks U.S. in Speech But Reaffirms Communism.” The New York Times 20 Dec. 2014. Web. 20 Dec. 2014
Shrum, LJ. 'Processing Strategy Moderates The Cultivation Effect'. Human Communication Research 27.1 (2001): 94-120. Web. 21 Dec. 2014.
