Many of Iran’s most prominent political figures distanced themselves from the Internet blackout that crippled communications in Iran last November amid violent countrywide protests. We at Doublethink have mapped who is responsible for managing and overseeing Iran’s Internet infrastructure. The results reveal a complicated network of unqualified, ideologically motivated government overseers and bonyad-linked consortia.
A followup to our previous post on “disappeared” companies
How the government obscures the public profile of top-earning firms to evade sanctions
How companies “privatized” under Ahmadinejad’s scheme only serve state-backed owners
Since the 19th-century launch of Iran’s first newspaper, those seeking to challenge the official narrative have largely had to do so from abroad to evade government censorship.
Photography helped propel the Iranian Revolution, and the Revolution helped push the boundaries of documentary photography in the country.
The règle du jeu of the Islamic Republic is lost on those with hope for reform.
A personal reflection on studying at the journalism school in Tehran.
Is it news? Sort of. Is it propaganda? It wishes. Iran’s English-language web channel seems most intent on putting its audience to sleep.
The Islamic Republic’s own rampant censorship is breaking its media hold on the Iranian people.
The terms for journalist meant to thwart journalism in the Islamic Republic.
Before the international edition of the New York Times moved to Paris, it was distributed out of Tehran.
An Iranian journalism school graduate speaks with Tehran Bureau.
Learning history one caricature at a time.
In this issue we turn to Paris, which has been a secular haven for generations of Iranians. Join us as we explore a few of Iranian culture’s many connections with the City of Light.
“We rose early in the morning, went down into a boat, and pushed off for the shore,” wrote Naser al-Din Shah, recalling his arrival in Paris on July 6, 1873.
The travelogue of Khan, a Persian writer from India, would inspire the Shah of Persia to embark on a years-long journey through Europe.
From the Diaries of Haj Sayyah: “There was music and singing in coffee shops and theatres…. The trees were festooned with green lights…. Young people and children danced…. They enjoyed complete freedom.”
Following in the tradition of capturing the American literary experience in Paris, from Stein to Hemingway to Baldwin, here’s a primer on some of the Iranian experience in France’s capital.