<p>"We have just been taken off the air," said Gladys Zapiain, the communications director for RCTV. "There was no prior notification."<br /><br />She said all Venezuelan cable operators had dropped RCTV and the other channels, arguing that they had failed to comply with a recent change in government regulations that obliges them to carry speeches by President Hugo Chavez, other officials as well as official government announcements.<br /><br />These materials are considered government propaganda by Chavez critics and opponents.<br />It was not immediately clear if the timing of the move by cable operators had been directly influenced by the government.<br /><br />On Saturday, RCTV refused to comply with new regulation for a second time.<br />That day, President Chavez addressed thousands of followers in western Caracas, demanding "absolute loyalty" and telling them he embodied the heart and soul of the Venezuelan people. <br /></p>
<p>"We have just been taken off the air," said Gladys Zapiain, the communications director for RCTV. "There was no prior notification."<br /><br />She said all Venezuelan cable operators had dropped RCTV and the other channels, arguing that they had failed to comply with a recent change in government regulations that obliges them to carry speeches by President Hugo Chavez, other officials as well as official government announcements.<br /><br />These materials are considered government propaganda by Chavez critics and opponents.<br />It was not immediately clear if the timing of the move by cable operators had been directly influenced by the government.<br /><br />On Saturday, RCTV refused to comply with new regulation for a second time.<br />That day, President Chavez addressed thousands of followers in western Caracas, demanding "absolute loyalty" and telling them he embodied the heart and soul of the Venezuelan people. <br /></p>
