IRIB chief slams Western sanctions as clear example of ‘media dictatorship’

The head of the Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting (IRIB) has censured Western-led sanctions against the broadcaster, saying the bans are in contravention of the principle of freedom of speech and a clear manifestation of "media dictatorship."

Peyman Jebelli made the remark in an interview while elaborating on the monopolistic and dictatorial approach of anti-Iran media as well as the West’s imposition of strict sanctions on the IRIB and its subsidiaries following recent foreign-backed riots in Iran.

“For years, we have witnessed obvious inconsistency between the claims and actions of those who claim to be champions of free speech, democracy and respect for society, one of the examples of which is the US violation of human rights by sanctioning the Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting,” Jebelli told Fars News Agency.

“When the Western and international institutions move to boycott the IRIB, they show that dictatorship and the violation of speech freedom, with which they deafened the ears of the whole world for years, happen so easily,” he added.

Stressing that the IRIB is Iran’s national media, Jebelli said the organization produces content and provides information in accordance with the needs of the society, and contributes in the progress of the country.

“If there is supposed to be freedom of expression, [Iran’s] national media as a platform for expressing people's views and managing public opinion will do its job, and their media will also do their job, and both sides should have the freedom [to do their job],” the IRIB CEO said.

“How come the anti-Iran media, which are busy day and night with encouraging sedition, training riots, creating subversion and undermining Iran and other countries’ security, operate freely in the heart of Europe and none of the media regulatory guidelines are applied to them,” Jebelli added.

“But the IRIB, which is a media specific to the Islamic Republic of Iran’s boundaries and operates according to the law, violates the rules in their opinion and they cannot even tolerate the existence of this organization and this media on satellites?”

The head of the Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting stressed that, “This is one of the very obvious examples of media dictatorship that we have clearly faced in recent events.”

Muzzling press freedom: US sanctions IRIB chief, World Service head, other officials

The US Treasury Department slaps a round of sanctions against high-ranking IRIB officials as the White House continues to interfere in the country’s internal affairs.

In November, the US Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) targeted with sanctions the IRIB Chief Jebelli, Head of the IRIB World Service and CEO of English-language Press TV television news network Ahmad Norouzi, the IRIB Vice Director General Mohsen Barmahani, Director of Press TV’s Programs Department Yousef Pour-Anvari, as well as the IRIB senior correspondents Ali Rezvani and Ameneh Sadat Zabihpour.

OFAC claimed that the IRIB had broadcast “hundreds of forced confessions of Iranian, dual national, and international detainees in Iran” during recent riots over the death of a young woman of Kurdish descent in the capital, Tehran.

Riots broke out in Iran after the death of Mahsa Amini on September 16. The 22-year-old fainted at a police station in Tehran and was pronounced dead three days later in a hospital. An official report by Iran’s Legal Medicine Organization concluded that Amini’s death was caused by illness rather than alleged blows to the head or other vital body organs.

Rioters went on a rampage, brutally attacking security officers and causing massive damage to public property as Western powers, in particular the United States, provided support.

The US bans in November came a week after the European Union imposed sanctions on a number of Iranian institutions and individuals, including Press TV, over alleged “rights violations” following the recent foreign-backed riots in the country.

The IRIB World Service in general and Press TV in particular, have played a remarkable role as the counterweight to Western propagandist media for years, demolishing and debunking their lop-sided and unfair coverage of Iran and the region.

Press TV continues to challenge Western narratives and provide cutting-edge journalism based on truth and fairness.

Press TV’s website can also be accessed at the following alternate addresses:

www.presstv.co.uk