Iran’s Ministry of Culture and Islamic Guidance has instructed international news outlets based in Tehran to include mandatory wording on submitted photos, videos, and reports. The directive says the material cannot be used by Israeli media, placing compliance responsibility on the submitting organisation. The move follows months of heightened regional conflict and scrutiny of information flows.
International
-Sathish Raman
Iran has tightened controls on how foreign news outlets share material filed from Tehran. A new order told international organisations to block Israeli media from using their reports, photos, and videos. The instructions applied to all media submissions, including written coverage and other productions, and placed liability on the outlet that sent the content.
Iran’s Ministry of Culture and Islamic Guidance has instructed international news outlets based in Tehran to include mandatory wording on submitted photos, videos, and reports. The directive says the material cannot be used by Israeli media, placing compliance responsibility on the submitting organisation. The move follows months of heightened regional conflict and scrutiny of information flows.
The directive, issued Tuesday, came from Iran’s Ministry of Culture and Islamic Guidance. The ministry oversees media work in the country. The notice, translated from Farsi, said the submitting organisation was responsible for any failure. It was sent to several outlets, including The Associated Press, according to the document.
Iran news content rules target Israeli media use
The order required a set line to be added to all filed material. It said the content could not be used by Israeli media. It also barred use by Farsi-language TV stations based outside Iran. The rule covered photos, videos, reports, and other media products sent by international bureaus.
The latest restrictions followed months of regional conflict involving Iran, the United States, and Israel. The new rule came three months after US and Israeli attacks on Iran. Those strikes grew into a continuing war that sometimes flared. On the 88th day, President Donald Trump said a peace deal was close.
Iran news content rules revive limits on BBC Persian and VOA Persian
Iran had already restricted sharing some material with outlets abroad. For years, officials warned international media against supplying content to BBC Persian, VOA Persian, Manoto TV and Iran International. Violations could lead to operations being shut inside Iran. Despite this, some overseas outlets still obtained Iranian state media images online.
Many Farsi-language media organisations outside Iran still accessed images and videos from Iranian state media. They used various websites and messaging apps to obtain material. Separately, satellite dishes were banned, though many people still had them. Internet access outside the country was shut off for weeks.
Iran news content rules draw scrutiny over media freedom rankings
The Washington-based group Freedom House ranked Iran as lacking a free and independent media. Freedom House said all television channels were controlled by hard-liners within the theocracy. Freedom House also noted that people working in other outlets faced harassment and arrest, adding to pressure on reporting and distribution.
Iran’s order also arrived as tensions remained high after recent strikes. Iran on Tuesday denounced the most recent US strikes as a sign of bad faith and unreliability. With the new directive, Tehran expanded restrictions on international media distribution, while holding each submitting outlet responsible for compliance.
With inputs from PTI
