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In the media ecosystem controlled by the Cuban regime, few figures embody the spirit of contemporary propaganda as well as Arleen Rodríguez Derivet.
A veteran journalist in state media —voice of Radio Rebelde, host of the 'Mesa Redonda', columnist for Cubadebate, and presenter of the podcast ‘Chapeando bajito’—, Rodríguez Derivet has become the main spokesperson for the governmental power.
Your task is not to inform, but to reshape the narrative: to explain, soften, and justify the missteps of the appointed leader, Miguel Díaz-Canel.
From "soul sister" to a communicational shield
Díaz-Canel has publicly referred to her as “my companion in all times” and “soul sister”. The journalist interviewed him several times for the program ‘Desde la Presidencia’, where the boundaries between institutional communication and propaganda completely fade away.
In that space, Rodríguez Derivet acts more as an image assistant than a journalist: he guides the leader's responses, provides favorable context, and portrays him as a sensitive and human leader surrounded by adversities.
The closeness between the two has been publicly acknowledged by Díaz-Canel himself. In March 2024, during the ceremony where Rodríguez Derivet received the National Journalism Award “José Martí” for Lifetime Achievement, the leader described her as “a good person, an excellent Cuban, a companion, a sister, and a true revolutionary.”
Furthermore, according to Cuba Sí, he recalled their years together in the Union of Young Communists and in the Communist Party, and stated that she “has criticized him for the better and has stirred his thoughts and feelings.”
With Arleen —he added— I share a friendship through thick and thin. The praise, far from being merely ceremonial, confirmed what many observers had already perceived: Rodríguez Derivet is not just a journalist of the system, but an emotional and political member of the innermost circle of power.
That closeness is not coincidental. The reporter is part of the core team of the communication apparatus of the Presidency, a group that includes Leticia Martínez Hernández (head of communication at the Palace of the Revolution), Randy Alonso (director of Cubadebate and host of 'Mesa Redonda'), and Humberto López (face of the program 'Razones de Cuba').
Each one plays a distinct role in the propaganda machinery: Hernández designs the strategy, Alonso institutionalizes it, López executes it with a punitive tone, and Arleen disguises it as humanism. She is responsible for administering the "revolutionary tenderness": that narrative where power always has good intentions and mistakes are, in reality, proofs of sacrifice.
The chronicler of explained disasters
Whenever the official narrative is threatened by an episode of discredit or a wave of criticism, Rodríguez Derivet appears to provide a sugarcoated version of events.
His role in the energy crisis of summer 2024 was emblematic: he accompanied Minister Vicente de la O Levy in a 'Round Table' where he acknowledged the failure of the strategy to prevent blackouts.
The journalist, rather than confronting him, guided the conversation to present the crisis as a "collective learning process" rather than what it really was: evidence of a collapsed structure.
A similar incident occurred during the episode with Hurricane Melissa, when Díaz-Canel awkwardly responded to a woman who was lamenting the loss of her bed and mattress. The viral clip, in which the president said, "I don’t have a bed to give you," became a symbol of his disconnection from reality.
Rodríguez Derivet responded from his program ‘Chapeando Bajito’ with a "clarification" that aimed to neutralize the damage: he published a partial transcript of the exchange, without showing the video, and claimed that the leader had acted with "deep sensitivity" and honesty. His defense aligned with the official version according to which the fragment was "manipulated by the enemies of the revolution."
The "Lis Cuesta case" and the defense of the absurd
The most remembered instance of his role as a firefighter was in 2022, when Díaz-Canel's wife, Lis Cuesta Peraza, set the networks ablaze with her now-famous tweet: "The dictator of my heart."
While most Cubans reacted with disbelief and sarcasm, Rodríguez Derivet stepped out to defend her from Cubadebate. He argued that Cuesta's message was an example of “irony and revolutionary humor,” a “playful and creative” use of political communication.
For the journalist, the controversy was not a slip-up, but an opportunity to "enter a new phase of our ways of communicating."
That interpretation set the tone for what was to come: the institutionalization of cynicism as a strategy. While previously the official press clung to dogma, today it experiments with jokes, playfulness, and emoticons.
Rodríguez Derivet is responsible for bringing coherence to this discursive transition: making the power's mistakes appear as spontaneous gestures of humanity.
The chronicler of dismissals and the "honorable transfers"
In February 2024, when Díaz-Canel dismissed the then Minister of Economy, Alejandro Gil Fernández, and other high-ranking officials, the journalist returned to her prominent role in the narrative.
In an article titled "They Don't Leave with Their Pockets Full", it was stated that the outgoing ministers had fulfilled their missions "with effort and dedication" and deserved "recognition and respect."
However, time ultimately disproved that gesture of institutional loyalty. Gil Fernández, the former minister whom Rodríguez Derivet presented as an example of “integrity and revolutionary commitment,” is now facing accusations of espionage, corruption, and embezzlement of public funds, in a legal process that the government itself has labeled as “serious.”
The journalist's words—“they don't leave with their bags full”—now resonate as a bitter irony, symbolizing a press that does not investigate, but instead absolves the faithful of the system in advance or condemns them without any evidence, according to the whims and dictates of totalitarian power.
From the Palace to Moscow
Her role as a presidential communications operator has also allowed her to be part of international delegations. During various tours abroad by Díaz-Canel, Rodríguez Derivet has been seen documenting meetings and official events.
More recently, images of him alongside the communicator Oliver Zamora Oria in Moscow —in cafés, restaurants, and walks through Red Square— circulated widely on social media. The photos showed both of them during a stay in the Russian capital that coincided with the celebration of the 20th anniversary of the state media Russia Today (RT).
The trip, publicly shared on social media, showcased the other side of government communication: that of journalists who, while defending sacrifices and “resistances” on air, are seen enjoying the privileges that their close ties to power afford them.
The "perfect gear"
The figure of Rodríguez Derivet encapsulates the evolution of Cuban propaganda in times of crisis. It is no longer about shouting slogans, but about managing perceptions: modulating the narrative, reinterpreting facts, and giving a human face to a system lacking democratic legitimacy.
Whenever Díaz-Canel faces a setback—a misplaced phrase, a fallen minister, an unfortunate tweet—the journalist appears to rebuild the narrative.
If Humberto López embodies coercion, Randy Alonso the solemn assent, and Leticia Hernández the "strategy," Rodríguez Derivet represents the rhetoric of comfort: the attempt to persuade Cubans that the power's inability always has an explanation, though never a solution.
And in this, more than anyone else, she fulfills her task with discipline. She is not the sweet voice of the regime, but rather its fierce handkerchief of tears: that spokesperson who corrects, defends, and cleans up the scene when the image of the designated ruler becomes tarnished.
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