The News, Tehran Style
The mullahs of Iran are launching a new English-language satellite news channel. Apparently, the propaganda that AP and Reuters and the New York Times willingly spread isn’t enough: Iran to vie with West by launching news channel.
TEHRAN (Reuters) - Iran’s state broadcaster will launch a 24-hour English-language satellite news channel next week to rival dominant Western services, a senior official said on Tuesday.
Tehran-based PRESS TV starts broadcasting from Tehran on Monday staffed by both Iranians and foreigners, and will seek to compete against the likes of CNN and BBC World, Nader Rad, head of live programming, told Reuters.
“The news is mostly covered by the Western media. We would like to have a say in this,” he said.
“They (Western outlets) don’t usually cover the whole story … The news about Iraq does not cover all perspectives. The news about Palestine and Beirut is also like this,” he said.
Rad said Britons and Americans were among those working for the new channel, some based in Tehran. PRESS TV had journalists in Washington, New York, London, Beirut and Damascus, and was planning to have staff in Baghdad and Cairo, he said.
The PRESS TV Web site (presstv.ir) said one of the goals was “to break the global media stranglehold of Western outlets.” It also said the channel wanted to “bridge cultural divisions.”
Here are the cultural division-bridging headlines currently posted at presstv.ir:
‘Iran ready for all-out defense’
Israeli bloodbath in Gaza
US demonstrators urge Gitmo closure
Troops, guinea pigs of Israeli army