In a HardTalk Extra interview screened on 6 April, Gavin Esler spoke to Mexian writer Carlos Fuentes, about his motivations for writing, and his thoughts on the new crop of leaders in latin America.
Fuentes's novel The Old Gringo was made into a film starring Jane Fonda
Carlos Fuentes is one of the authors that is credited with bringing the Latin American novel worldwide fame.
Books like The Old Gringo and The Death of Artemio Cruz have made him Mexico's most successful contemporary author.
He is a former ambassador, and like his contemporaries Gabriel Garcia Marquez and Mario Vargas Llosa, his work frequently turns on political ideas.
He tells Gavin Esler about the insight he has gained into Mexico living as an exile, and why even today South America is still defined by its relationship with the United States.
HARDtalk Extra can be seen on BBC World at 0330 GMT, 0830 GMT, 1530 GMT, 1830 GMT, 2330 GMT.
It can also be seen on BBC News 24 at 04:30 and 23:30.