Havana Times is an independent Cuban blog and online magazine founded in 2008. The online publication is edited in Nicaragua. Most of its contributors live in Havana, Santiago de Cuba and Guantanamo. There are also Cuban contributors in Venezuela, the Dominican Republic, Ecuador and Mexico and volunteer translators in the Netherlands, the United States and England.
Overview
The project began as early as 2007, and the magazine was launched 2008 in Cuba, with Circles Robinson as editor. Robinson, a US citizen, worked as a translator for ESTI, Cuba's official translation agency, but left Cuba after his work contract was not renewed in 2009, a fact that he associates with his role in Havana Times. As of 2009, Robinson edits the magazine from Nicaragua and makes occasional trips to Cuba to meet with contributors, who "have thus far been able to continue without further problems." According to Robinson, the magazine occupies a space between extreme positions on the Cuban system:
I am trying to promote a combination of conventional and new-style reporting, as well as commentary that reflects critical support for the Cuban revolution, which is not necessarily synonymous with its leaders.
Havana Times is published online in Spanish and English with no print version.