Tehran Times Political Desk

May 17, 2006
Iran - Tehran Times - Home Page (English)    

Iran's Supreme Leader, the Ayatollah Sayed
Ali Khamenei Attands a Book Fair in Tehran,
May 10. He Found a Number of Books There
That Really Challenged His World View [NOT!].

[ Khamenei Shrine, For The Real Fan]

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TEHRAN: Supreme Leader of the Islamic Revolution, Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei, said on Tuesday that many global media outlets are controlled by people who possess the most destructive nuclear weapons.

In a meeting with representatives of national radio and television networks at the 7th International Radio Program Festival, Ayatollah Khamenei said that the media can be used to facilitate cultural exchanges between nations, and the loftiest human values.

But the Leader lamented that global media outlets are suffering from an epidemic characterized by magnifying insignificant events and ignoring human tragedy.

“Global media networks casually ignore the deaths of 120,000 Iraqi civilians during the U.S.-led attack on Iraq, but instead give wide coverage to the victims of bird flu.”

Ayatollah Khamenei said that the way of thinking and culture that has dominated global media outlets has served the interests of multinational corporations and the hegemonic powers.

"If ethical values and virtue ever find a way to influence the administration of these global media outlets, the situation of humanity will improve, and these bodies will work toward the happiness and prosperity of mankind," he noted.

He went on to say that while mass media could have a positive impact on the human condition and promote world peace and security, up to now they have become tools in the hands of warmongers, who seek to ignite the flames of war and promote a particular lifestyle, at the expense of the cultural identity of nations.

Mass media should instead provide dialogue among nations, he added.

Citing an example of "one-way propaganda," the Leader said that global mass media outlets claim that Iran's civilian nuclear program is actually a front for "weapons production," while many of these outlets are themselves working for companies that manufacture conventional arms and nuclear weapons.

"Every day, they spread tremendous lies. They fail to cover the daily massacres of defenseless Palestinians by the Zionist regime, but instead give full coverage to explosions that occur and result in few injuries," Ayatollah Khamenei pointed out.

VIDEO FROM QATAR: SYRIA BELIEVES IRAN HAS PEACEFUL INTENT

AL-JAZEERA, QATAR: Excerpts from an interview with Syrian Foreign Minister Walid Al-Mu'alem, April 19, 00:002:20, MEMRI

"We believe the Iranian assurances that its [nuclear] activity is for peaceful purposes."