Tuesday, July 31, 2007

Move Over News, Propaganda TV is Here

Iran is going to launch a 24 hour News Channel to curb Western dominance on information in the world. The channel is called Press TV. Well, what type of channel is this Press TV, and how will they gain the world's trust? Easy answer, just ask the current President of Iran, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad:
Press TV should stay beside the oppressed people of the world ... Broadcasting the truth immediately, providing precise analysis and exposing the plots of propaganda networks of the enemy is among its duties."
It's funny he mentioned the channel should stay "beside the oppressed people of the world" when in fact the Iranian people are oppressed. Not only that, but the government is operating in a propaganda campaign at the moment. The Iranian government is right now arresting dual Iranian-American citizens for espionage. A recent tool of the Iranian propaganda machine is to use forced confessions on TV.
Iran in the past has allegedly forced detainees to incriminate themselves publicly on television.

Most recently in March, British sailors detained by Tehran for allegedly entering Iranian territory appeared in videos during their captivity. Britain accused Iran of using the sailors for propaganda by putting them on TV, where they said they trespassed in Tehran's waters. The crew was freed after two weeks.
Is this what we can expect from the new Iranian News channel? Will their slogan be "Humane and Free"? At least we will get some comic relief every now and then :
You can tell that Iran is feeling a little beleaguered these days when there are reports that Tehran may be under attack from rodents!

That is what the official Islamic Republic News Agency reported this week, that police had, ahem, "arrested" 14 squirrels on charges of espionage.
The Squirrel Revolutionists! I bet they were staging a coup! Even Comical Ali couldn't have pulled that one off.

Press TV, delivering propaganda to the masses.