3/29/13

Latin Pulse: 3.29.2013

This month marks the anniversary of the controversial 2012 gang truce in El Salvador.  This week, Latin Pulse looks back at how the truce has worked between the large transnational criminal organizations MS-13 and Barrio 18, which characterize themselves as street gangs or maras.  The primary question is how was the truce brought about?  Did the Catholic Church broker the gang peace independently or did the Salvadoran government mask its involvement in the truce by getting the Church involved?  The news segment of the program looks at the expectations of President Barack Obama concerning the debate over immigration reforms.

The program includes in-depth interviews with:

Steven Dudley of InSight Crime; and   
Hector Silva of American University's Center for Latin American & Latino Studies (CLALS).

Executive Producer: Rick Rockwell
Associate Producer: Curt Devine.

(To download or stream this podcast, click here.)


 (The program is 30 minutes in length and the file size is 28 MB.)

 






















3/22/13

Latin Pulse: 3.22.2013

The installation of Pope Francis this week focuses Latin Pulse on topics of both spirituality and science. The program discusses the rise of evangelical Christianity over liberation theology. The program also explores the pope's views on same sex marriage, the LGBT community, and how the Catholic hierarchy failed to fight the military junta that ruled Argentina. The focus of the program turns to health with the allegations of the Venezuelan government regarding the origins of the cancer that afflicted former President Hugo Chavez. The program also looks at the rise of cancer rates in Latin America.

The program includes in-depth interviews with:

Prof. Andrew Chesnut* of Virginia Commonwealth University; and  Rolando Camacho of the Programme of Action for Cancer Therapy (PACT).

Executive Producer: Rick Rockwell
Associate Producer: Curt Devine.

(To download or stream this podcast, click here.)


*Chesnut is the author of Competitive Spirits: Latin America's New Religious Economy.

 (The program is 30 minutes in length and the file size is 28 MB.)

 





























3/15/13

Latin Pulse: 3.15.2013

This week, Latin Pulse returns to the topic of telenovelas. The program explores the cultural aspects of this popular television form and discusses the advances of that form as propelled by television writers and producers in Colombia, Venezuela, and Brazil.  The program also explores how telenovelas have been used as metaphorical political commentary, especially in Venezuela and Brazil.  The news segment of the program covers how Argentina's Cardinal Jorge Bergoglio was elevated to pope, replacing Pope Benedict XVI, and became the first pope from Latin America.
 
The program includes in-depth interviews with:

Antonio La Pastina of Texas A&M University and 
Carolina Acosta-Alzuru of the University of Georgia.

Executive Producer: Rick Rockwell
Associate Producer: Alexia Campbell.

(To download or stream this podcast, click here.)


A full listing of songs used in the production of this special can be found here.

 (The program is 30 minutes in length and the file size is 28 MB.)

 

































3/8/13

Latin Pulse: 3.08.2013

The death of Venezuela's President Hugo Chavez resonated globally this week and this episode of Latin Pulse focuses on Chavez and his legacy.   The program looks at the positives and negatives attached to the Chavez government. Some parts of the program look at the outcomes of the Chavez social programs in Venezuela.  The discussion also covers Venezuelan politics after Chavez. Finally, the program focuses on the potential for diplomatic change between the United States and Venezuela in the post-Chavez era.
 
The program includes in-depth interviews with:

Daniel Hellinger of Webster University and the Center for Democracy in the Americas (CDA); 
Eric Hershberg of American University's Center for Latin American & Latino Studies (CLALS); and
Fulton Armstrong of American University's CLALS.

Executive Producer: Rick Rockwell
Associate Producer: Curt Devine.

(To download or stream this podcast, click here.)



 (The program is 30 minutes in length and the file size is 28 MB.)

 






















3/1/13

Latin Pulse: 3.01.2013

Politics in South America provides the common theme this week on Latin Pulse, as the program looks at upcoming votes in Paraguay and on the Falkland Islands.  Voters on the Falklands will decide if they wish to stay a part of the United Kingdom.  Argentina claims the islands and refers to them as the Malvinas.  The program also looks at the presidential campaign in Paraguay and questions posed about frontrunner Horacio Cartes.  The news segment of the program covers the move this week by Mexican prosecutors to charge the powerful head of that country's teachers union with various corruption charges.
 
The program includes in-depth interviews with:

Prof. Andrew Nickson of the University of Birmingham in the U.K.; and
Peter Hakim of the Inter-American Dialogue.

Executive Producer: Rick Rockwell
Associate Producer: Curt Devine

Writer: Zach Cohen.

(To download or stream this podcast, click here.)



 (The program is 30 minutes in length and the file size is 28 MB.)