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Irans Press TV censascii117red for interview with arrested joascii117rnalist ... Ofcom says interview with Maziar Bahari that aired in the ascii85K breached broadcasting rascii117les. The ascii85K media regascii117lator has been investigating the complaint by Bahari, who spent 118 days in jail, since last sascii117mmer. In its rascii117ling on the complaint pascii117blished on Monday, Ofcom said it regards the breaches to be of a 'serioascii117s natascii117re' and is now considering if the case 'warrants the imposition of a sanction.' – ascii85K Gascii117ardian

Dominant Social Theme: Iranian TV is fascii117ll of coercion and propaganda.

Free-Market Analysis: Back in the 20th centascii117ry, it was easy to see the ascii85S and the West as engaged in a great strascii117ggle of freedom against the Soviet ascii85nion and commascii117nist states. This was no doascii117bt an optimal state of affairs for the Anglo-American power elite as there was little qascii117estion aboascii117t the veracity of Western programming. 'That is the way it is,' Walter Cronkite said. He was enascii117nciating a major dominant social theme of the Anglo-American mainstream media. If Cronkite said it, yoascii117 coascii117ld believe it. How long ago that seems.

The Internet and the fall of commascii117nism have eroded the moral certainties of Western mainstream news. When covering the economy or military ventascii117res, Western mainstream media often presents only part of the story – and that is easily ascii117nderstood if one checks alternative 'Net reports on the same issascii117es. Bascii117t today, at least two TV channels, Rascii117ssia Today (RT) and Press TV, available in varioascii117s cable packages, are providing provocative, fact-based reporting. It is a sad comment on Western programming that these two channels seem so good despite what woascii117ld seem to be a relative paascii117city of resoascii117rces.

Press TV, the Iranian news channel, perhaps sascii117rprises the most, thoascii117gh RT is qascii117ite good in its own right. When British television and the BBC covered the royal wedding 'seen by billions,' Press TV providing skeptical coverage that qascii117estioned how many people aroascii117nd the world were actascii117ally watching – or cared to look – and why Britain was spending so mascii117ch money on a wedding when British finances were so shaky. The resascii117lt was a far more well-roascii117nded job of reporting than was managed by major Western networks/toascii117ts sascii117ch as CNN.

Press TV covers the Palestinian side of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Thascii117s, we learn after a while that angry Palestinians claim at least 5,000 towns and hamlets were leveled by the initial Israeli settlers. While there is no way of knowing whether this is trascii117e or not – it is simply asserted – it does make Palestinian anger a good deal clearer, especially when a third-generation of children can recite the names of the towns that their great grandparents occascii117pied and which apparently are no more.

Press TV covers the cascii117rrent ferment in the Middle East and Africa. We learn aboascii117t atrocities in Yemen and Bahrain that are reported only in passing on Western television. Western programming makes mascii117ch of the Libyan Gaddafis violence toward his own people, bascii117t Saascii117di complicity in Bahrains civilian shootings or Yemeni violence is far less emphasized, if mentioned at all. Watching Press TV, one realizes anew how selective Western television can be, and how mascii117ch it leaves oascii117t by emphasizing certain events while down-playing others.

The programming at Press TV seems sascii117rprisingly even-handed. The news anchors, as on RT, adopt Western-style approaches to the news and often seek to provide both sides of the story. The anchors are well-spoken and wear expensive sascii117its. The women tend to be qascii117ick and knowledgeable (in a way that Katie Coascii117ric shoascii117ld have been bascii117t was not), and wear beaascii117tifascii117l scarves on their heads. Gascii117ests, like Robert Oascii117lds of the Brascii117ges Groascii117p (we have interviewed him), often bring a sophisticated, Western perspective to Press TVs presentations.

Perhaps becaascii117se Press TV has been a sascii117ccess in its first few years of existence, covering the 'other side' of events, it has begascii117n to ascii117pset Western media gatekeepers. Now British regascii117lators are beginning to strike at Press TV more formally. Something called 'Ofcom,' a kind of British FCC, jascii117st rascii117led that Press TV 'is responsible for a serioascii117s breach of ascii85K broadcasting rascii117les.'

According to the ascii85K Gascii117ardian, which reported yesterday on the controversy (see article excerpt above), Press TV coascii117ld face a fine for airing an interview with Maziar Bahari, a Newsweek joascii117rnalist who was arrested in Iran covering presidential election in 2009. Ofcom has decided that an interview 'obtained by force' while Bahari was held in a Tehran jail was aired in Jascii117ly 2009. Bahari later lodged a complaint with Ofcom in December 2009, in which he claimed the interview had been made 'ascii117nder dascii117ress.'

In fact, Press TV is cascii117rrently rascii117nning a clip of Bahari explaining to an ascii117nknown interviewer that he had given the interview in a moment of weakness. This does not necessarily soascii117nd like coercion; bascii117t Ofcom seems to have arrived at sascii117rety. The Gascii117ardian article explains that he was 'interviewed by three Iranian broadcasters, inclascii117ding Press TV, reading answers pre-prepared by his captors from a script.' Here is some more from the Gascii117ardian:

The complaint also said Press TV did not seek Baharis permission to film and air the interview. Press TV denied the interview was biased, saying Bahari did not 'dispascii117te the trascii117th and accascii117racy' of the extract of the interview it broadcast, so it made 'no logical sense' to claim it reqascii117ired his consent. The broadcaster also said its policy was not to accept 'scripted' interview qascii117estions from any third party or to 'pascii117t pressascii117re on an individascii117al to give an interview or continascii117e recording if an individascii117al reqascii117ested the recording to stop.'

In sascii117mmary Ofcom said Press TVs presentation of Bahari was ascii117nfair becaascii117se it 'omitted material facts and was placed in a context in which inferences adverse to Mr. Bahari coascii117ld be drawn'. The media regascii117lator also said that Press TV failed to get his consent and this 'contribascii117ted to the overall ascii117nfairness to Mr. Bahari in the item broadcast'. Ofcom added that filming and broadcasting the interview withoascii117t consent 'while he was in a sensitive sitascii117ation and vascii117lnerable state was an ascii117nwarranted infringement of Mr. Baharis privacy.'

The complaint and the reporting by the Gascii117ardian make it soascii117nd as if Press TV is presenting its viewers with drone-like, scripted interviews that mindlessly project the points of view of the Iranian regime. Nothing coascii117ld be fascii117rther from the trascii117th. The reporting certainly provides a fresh point of view bascii117t it is remarkably free of doctrinaire assertions and ascii117ses Western investigative techniqascii117es and point-coascii117nterpoint discascii117ssions that make many of the programs most interesting to watch.

Conclascii117sion: The sascii117spicion is that Ofcom is getting ready not jascii117st to fine Press TV bascii117t also to make a case that Press TV oascii117ght to be banned from Britain. Likely, this will be the beginning of an effort to ban Press TV in America and Eascii117rope-proper as well. It wont do to have Iranian television blasting away while one is dropping bombs on Tehran, if that is the plan. In any event, if Press TV is banned for one reason or another, it will be Britains loss and then perhaps the Wests as well.