Venezuelan president takes to the ‘battle trench’ of the Internet
Earlier this year, Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez urged his supporters to use social networking sites to combat his critics, telling them, “The Internet is a battle trench because it is bringing a current of conspiracy.” But why rely others to do that which you can do yourself? Chavez’s communications watchdog, Diosdado Cabello, announced on Tuesday that the Comandante has opened a Twitter account, and will soon be disseminating his own 140-character-long messages. His chosen handle, @chavezcandanga, quickly attracted some 400,000 followers. The micro-blogging site has proven to be wildly popular in Venezuela, where membership grew over 1,000 per cent in 2009.