Message to INFODIO readers: investigative journalism, which is what this site does, takes lots of time. Visiting media looking for a quick run down on Venezuela's gargantuan corruption, have the decency to at least cite the source when plagiarising this site's content without attribution (exhibit Reuters here and here, exhibit Bloomberg here, exhibit OCCRP here). To all readers, do the right thing, the honest thing: support independent investigative journalism, help us expose rampant corruption. Note added 28/06/2021: impostors are using this site's former editor's full name, and a fake email address (alek.boyd.arregui@gmail.com) to send copyright infringement claims / take down requests to web hosting companies (exhibit Hostgator). The attempt is yet another effort paid by corrupt thugs to erase information about their criminal activities. Infodio.com has no issues with other websites / journalists using / posting information published here, so long as the source is properly cited.

censorship

Due process alien to Twitter

A little update on Twitter's decision to permanently suspend my verified @alekboyd account. On 27 August, Twitter placed a temporary lock on my account. The intention was to get me to delete tweets that "violated" Twitter's rules. Since I didn't consider that I was in violation of Twitter rules, and I did not want to delete the tweet in question without first explaining why, I didn't delete the tweet. No communication was ever established with Twitter. No chance of arguing why I did not want to delete the tweet was ever given.

Twitter blocks @alekboyd, censors information on rampant corruption.

It seems that for Twitter, some users are more equal than others, some private information is more equal than other. Some telephone numbers are more equal than others... I remember vividly the break into my apartment, threats to my children, theft of laptops and pictures obtained through illegal surveillance that lasted months, and that were posted on Twitter, without problem. I remember the impersonation in Twitter accounts depicting me as a racist, and baseless defamation that followed suggesting as I was pedophile.

Internet censorship and repression in Venezuela

In the last few days the chavista regime in Venezuela censored the Colombian news channel NTN24. CNN reporter Karl Penhaul and his crew were assaulted by police in Caracas for, basically, doing their job. Caracas Press Club and Instituto Sociedad y Prensa have reported various attacks on journalists in the last few days. Images and videos of the brutality unleashed on protesters uploaded to Twitter have reportedly been censored. Yesterday, President Maduro threatened to kick CNN out of the country.

Overcoming censorphip in Venezuela: a lonely battle

The stuff published in this website is not to everyone's liking. Boligarchs in particular are seething with the prospect of having their dirty deals exposed here. Given the enormous hard power that they wield in Venezuela it's no surprise they got the site banned. It also requires executive powers to send intelligence police to raid homes of poor fellows they suspect are providing me with information. I find astonishing the silence of fellow Venezuelan bloggers, journalists, media and freedom of expression advocates in this respect.