Politics and Government

Another Secret U.S. Sway Effort In Cuba Uncovered

Published August 4, 2014 at 12:12 PM CDT

The headquarters for the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) is seen in Washington, Tuesday, April 1, 2014. (J. David Ake/AP)

In April, an investigation by the Associated Press revealed that the U.S. Agency For International Development (USAID) had created a Twitter-like company in Cuba. The goal was to undermine the Cuban government by giving disgruntled citizens the tools to more easily organize and communicate.

USAID shut down that program, which was called ZunZuneo, in 2012, but that hasn’t stopped the agency from trying to provoke political change in Cuba. The AP is now reporting it uncovered a program that secretly dispatched young Latin Americans to Cuba, under the cover of health programs, to recruit political activists.

Associated Press investigative reporter Jack Gillum joins Here & Now’s Robin Young with details.

AP: US Sent Latin Youth Undercover In Anti-Cuba Ploy

See documents about the program via AP

Guest

Jack Gillum, investigative reporter for the Associated Press. He tweets @jackgillum.