Havana, January 22 (RHC)-- Secretary General of the Latin American Federation of Journalists (FELAP), Nelson del Castillo, called to fight the corporate press which use media manipulation and lies to monopolize information.

Fake news and media campaigns against communities defending their independence are all part of U.S. attempts to maintain  imperialist control, he pointed out in statements to Prensa Latina on Monday, during the opening of a two-day international forum, held in Cuba's National Hotel to discuss the current challenges to journalism in the region.

He recalled U.S. aggressions against Cuba since the triumph of the Revolution, and attempts to distort its reality and damage its image.  Most notably, Castillo mentioned media manipulation around the trials of Batista’s war criminals, in response to which Fidel convened Operation Truth, inviting 400 foreign journalists to witness first-hand the legal proceedings.

Regarding the international forum, he noted: "I am confident that these two days will be illuminating and enlightening, especially for new generations, about the necessary role of defending the truth and confronting fake news."