Michael Reid
Michael Reid is the "Americas Editor" at The Economist magazine. Reid has reported for many years from Peru, Mexico and Brazil for the past 20 years. While previously involved during the 1970s and 1980s in the progressive Latin America scene, he purportedly went to Bolivia for ideological reasons, he is presently in the "neoliberal camp"[1]. During the 1970s Reid was part of a squatter group on Villa Road, Lambeth. On 10 July 2006, BBC2 ran a series entitled "Lefties", and Michael Reid was interviewed for the series, and in the program stated: "The idea was that there would be a revolution. One was always a little bit vague about exactly what form that might take in Britain, maybe a general strike or whatever. It sounds and it was wildly utopian."[2]
He is currently an associate of James Dunkerley and Lord Brennan; he has had a long-time friendship with Dunkerley and has known Brennan for a long time. Brennan's wife helped Reid edit his latest book.
Book Launch
On 2 November 2007, Reid's book was launched to much fanfare at Canning House in London. Many diplomats, foreign office officials, investment bankers, financial analysts, risk analysts and a sprinkling of academics were present. Reid's new book presents a history of Latin America which is critical of the "dependency theory analysts", suggests that the best model for Latin America is a mixture of liberal democracy and neoliberal economics, and also is highly critical of developments in Venezuela which are termed populist. The broad overt approval of the book among the senior foreign office operatives and foreign diplomats (they were seated in the front row), suggests that this is the dominant policy framework among the foreign policy elite.[3]
References, Resources and Contact
Publications
- Michael Reid, Forgotten Continent: The Battle for Latin America's Soul, Yale Univ. Press, Nov. 2007.
References
- ↑ This fact was related by James Dunkerley during his comments at the Reid's book launch at Canning House, London, 2 November 2007.
- ↑ Lefties: Property is Theft, BBC Two, 10 July 2006 7pm-8pm
- ↑ Observations and comment by Paul de Rooij who sat in the second row behind the Foreign Office senior operatives and the ambassador of the Dominican Republic.
