Journalism in Brief
The overlying principal for journalists in Iran is that most of them are merely pawns of the state. According to a Reporters Without Borders study, Iran is in the top 5 for the number of journalist imprisonments, and journalists are constantly in fear of speaking out against the state for this reason. This fear for journalists is accentuated during election years – especially for online journalists and bloggers – many of whom were arrested during the heavily protested 2009 elections. Because of this, Iranian media stay clear of criticizing any government officials or programs, especially religious leaders.
Arrests
In 2012 alone, 232 journalists were imprisoned in Iran, the second highest figure in the world.
A Committee for Suspension of the Press exists to bring charges against journalists, with cases heard by the Press Court. Juries are extensions of the state and will often find journalists guilty of crimes if they write something unsettling to Islamic culture. |
Green Revolution ImpactThe Green Revolution in 2009 created an even stricter state lockdown on journalism. Iranian citizens protested the election of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and a wave of rogue journalists – particularly citizen reporters that used online media and social media (Grossman, 2011). Anti-state blogs and Tweets popped up faster than the Iranian government could shut them down, and dozens of journalists were imprisoned. Iran was finally able to gain control of the media situation by blocking foreign radio and satellite signals and launching a propaganda campaign. Some of the restrictions from the Green Revolution still last to this day (CJFE, 2011).
Iranian journalist Maryam Aghvami called the media situation in Iran following the 2009 election “one of the most heart-wrenching realities that media activists around the world have witnessed (CJFE, 2011).” Journalists are often imprisoned, tortured, or put in solitary confinement for an arbitrary amount of time after trials conducted by conservative government powers. |