Morales, Evo (1959–)

Juan Evo Morales Ayma is the 80th president of the Republic of Bolivia. He began his political career as a union leader of the cocalero, the coca crop peasants. As soon as the ethnic-indigenous political movements in Bolivia started to gain political weight, he extended his political rhetoric including indigenous demands and issues. As leader of the still-young MAS (Movimiento al Socialismo—Movement Toward Socialism), he was elected member of the Bolivian Parliament in 2002 and president of Bolivia in the elections of December 2005.

Evo Morales has a very intuitive understanding of media. Of modest origin and never having studied anything related to communications, he nevertheless was able to use the media for his political purposes in a tactically very smart way throughout his political career. ...