Mr. Chávez blames the shortages on "speculation" by distributors and producers....A private farm association called Fedeagro estimates Venezuela grew 8% less food last year.

They might both be telling the truth. They might both be lying. Or they might both be selecting which bits of the truth to emphasize and which to ignore and which to distort, which is what generally happens when politicians or lobbyists indulge in spin, in all countries.

That's where a free press should come in, to sort out the spin from the truth - but partisan media that deliberately distorts information for an agenda are not part of a free press, they are parasitic hangers on who undermine a free press capable of carrying out investigation. It may be necessary to tolerate them as part of the price to pay for enabling free media to exist, but this is a contingent decision not a universal principle.

A TV station which has in the past backed an armed coup that nearly succeeded, and which has not changed in any significant way is a serious danger in a country such as Venezuela, This is especially so where the coup was actively supported by a hostile US government with a long history of promoting bloody coups in neighbouring countries such as such as Chile, Guatamala, and indeed throughout the continent.