The United States has tried to control the poor Central American country, Nicaragua, for more than 100 years. John Bolton designated Nicaragua as part of the “Troika of Tyranny” along with Cuba and Venezuela for daring to defend its sovereignty. Since the failed violent coup attempt in 2018, the US foreign policy establishment has focused on preventing President Daniel Ortega’s reelection using a variety of tactics. Ben Norton, associate editor of The Grayzone, who is based in Managua, describes those tactics, the complicity of corporate media and social media and how Nicaragua is working to protect its democratic institutions. Norton outlines the US playbook in Nicaragua, including what to expect after the election.
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Ben Norton is assistant editor of the investigative journalism website The Grayzone.
He produces the political podcast and video show Moderate Rebels, which he also co-hosts with The Grayzone editor and founder Max Blumenthal.
Ben is also a contributor to the media watchdog Fairness and Accuracy in Reporting (FAIR).
He was previously a politics staff writer and reporter for Salon and AlterNet, as well as a producer and reporter for The Real News. He has freelanced for a variety of other publications, such as The Intercept.
Other articles and writings can be found at Ben’s blog. And here you can find a selection of his media appearances and interviews.
And Ben does some photography as part of his journalistic work. You can find his photojournalism at Flickr.
When not reporting on politics (which is honestly rather rare), Ben is also a musician and composer. Here you can find his music, in a variety of styles, including jazz, rock, classical, and electronic.