CNN recently shared a reel on Instagram featuring footage from Iran’s Fars News Agency. While they noted that Fars is Iranian state media, they did not make clear that “state media” in Iran operates inside an authoritarian system with no independent press.
Fars does not function like a public broadcaster in a democracy. It exists within a regime where journalists cannot freely investigate the Supreme Leader, the Revolutionary Guard, or state corruption. Independent criticism of those in power can lead to imprisonment or worse. If criticizing your own rulers is off limits, it is not free press. It is propaganda.
This pattern is not unique to Iran. In Gaza, Hamas controls the media environment and does not tolerate dissent. In Qatar, Al Jazeera aggressively critiques foreign governments, but sustained criticism of Qatar’s own ruling system is illegal.
A free press is defined by its ability to challenge power at home. Simply labeling something “state media” is not enough. Audiences deserve to understand that in Iran, there is no free press to begin with.
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© Divuach Ne’eman R”A, 2025
