American Notes CUBA

TV Marti, the U.S.-funded plan to bombard Cuba with seditious American news and entertainment shows, began its three-month $7.5 million test last week, broadcasting from Florida to the few insomniacs awake in Havana when the signal came in at 1:30 a.m. Within minutes, jammers blocked TV Marti's signal, denying Havana the delights of a Spanish-dubbed Kate & Allie sitcom, World Series reruns, a Spanish game show called La Feria de la Alegria (The Happiness Fair) and MTV music videos.

President Fidel Castro denounced the broadcasts as "subversive" and a violation of Cuban sovereignty. But rather than jamming TV Marti, his best revenge might be to broadcast his own long-winded speeches into the U.S. A recent blast from Cuba was heard on radios as far away as Nashville.