Chavez under media fire

As the battle for the future of Venezuela continues with mass demonstrations demanding a referendum on President Hugo Chavez's rule, the media is playing a major role in developments.

The press is overwhelmingly dominated by a vocal opposition seeking to remove Mr Chavez from power, while much of the television watched by millions of Venezuelans is similarly in opposition hands.

Mr Chavez has previously described a group of powerful media owners as "the four horsemen of the apocalypse" and has accused the press of publishing "rubbish, lies and perversion".

We are absolutely united in revealing the scale of the fraud Pro-Chavez official on state TV

One of the few media outlets supporting the president is Venezuelan state TV, which broadcast an announcement from the head of a leading pro-government movement warning that the authorities would never accept a referendum petition "in which the dead have voted".

"We are absolutely organised and united in revealing the scale of the fraud", Ismael Garcia of the group Comando Ayacucho told viewers.

Noting how many Venezuelans were "more united than ever behind the great project of change" being led by President Chavez, Mr Garcia nevertheless welcomed the fact that the latest protests had been peaceful.

However, he condemned what he described as "irresponsible campaigns" by the private television stations Globovision and Venevision "to incite the people to take to the streets, seeking to throw more wood on the fire".

The opposition is united against repression Globovision

He called on parliament "to approve, as soon as possible, the Radio and Television Law for Social Responsibility" - a controversial bill that would restrict newscasts and schedules.

Viewers of Globovision saw a different version of events. "On Saturday, the opposition took the streets to reject the violations of human rights."

"The opposition is united against repression, in defence of the signatures and of human rights."

'Peace and reconciliation'

Venevision viewers saw a similar report. "Massive attendance at the march against the violation of human rights in Venezuela."

Leading dailies reinforced the theme. "Against repression," said a headline in El Nacional above a story of the demonstrations.

Our missiles are 3.4 million signatures El Universal

El Universal stressed their peaceful nature. "In the streets without violence, with pleas for peace, coexistence and reconciliation."

"Under a radiant sun, many thousands of Caracans marched and raised their voices and banners against violence and for the validity of their signatures."

Another report in El Universal was headlined: "Our missiles are 3.4 million signatures."

BBC Monitoring, based in Caversham in southern England, selects and translates information from radio, television, press, news agencies and the Internet from 150 countries in more than 70 languages.