War Against War

Press TV, the Iranian based twenty- four hour news network is facing criticism for failing to provide adequate coverage of the recent UK riots. The network was branded a ‘$25 million News Network with No News’ by the website Nedaye Enghelab (Message of the Revolution) which is traditionally affiliated with the Revolutionary Guards. On the one hand, Press TV, the state- funded station, claims that its primary aim is to counter ‘western bias’ in acting as a ‘second eye’ for Western and Iranian audiences alike; however, harsh criticism last week expressed dissatisfaction with the channel’s weak exposure of the perceived ‘justice- seeking uprisings’ in the UK.

The Nedaye Enghelab website believes it would have been in the best interests of Iran to have stepped up the coverage on the situation in England, speculating that events could represented the beginnings of a ‘mass movement’ in the UK. The report also indicates that the Iranian government might have been able to capitalise on the instability in Britain; the London branch of Press TV, under the guidance of former Labour MP George Galloway, was criticised for not assuming ‘ideological leadership’ of the protestors. It is argued that representing the ‘masses’ in the UK would have provided a platform for the Iranian government to enter into dialogue with Westminster, especially in terms of negotiating the Iranian assets currently frozen in UK bank accounts. As an ‘overseas arm’ of the government, Press TV was said to be in a position to ‘avenge’ the British government’s alleged participation in the 2009 unrest in Iran. BBC Persia reportedly broadcast thirty one accounts of ‘fabricated’ election fraud, which is claimed to have disillusioned people and further contributed to the escalation of the 2009 election protests. To this end, the Nedaye Enghelab website claims that Iran has missed an opportunity to further their side in the ‘Soft War’ with the UK- something which they largely attribute to a lack of professionalism at Press TV.


As a ‘victim’ of this ‘western bias’, and a citizen of London myself, I find it hard to conceive of how, given sufficient details of the events, the UK rioters could be upheld as ‘justice- seeking protestors’. What those responsible for the criticism of Press TV have failed to realise is that the rioters on the streets of Britain had, for the most part, no central unifying factor. Their actions were not politically motivated, and as more and more evidence comes to light, it is becoming increasingly difficult to draw parallels with the criminal activities of a select few in the UK, who essentially jeopardised the freedoms of others, and the ‘justice- seeking’ protestors in nations like Egypt, Libya, and Syria who have been protesting for their own basic freedoms. It is an insult to the sacrifices made by genuinely disadvantaged people to suggest that Press TV’s perceived weak coverage of the UK riots is a government attempt to thwart movements for freedom and justice across the world. It seems apparent that the real issue in hand here is the extent of the Iranian people’s disillusionment with their own government: the fact that Press TV receives so much investment from the government leaves them wide open to criticism from dissatisfied viewers. Whilst Press TV may not have been adequately representing the views of many of those from within Iran, the extent of their coverage was in fact directly proportional to the minimal impact that the UK riots had on the international spectrum.