Iran's state broadcaster veers further right under IRGC control
Iran's already conservative, state-funded broadcaster appears ready to pursue an even more ideological approach under its new IRGC-linked director.
Following weeks of speculations, Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei appointed Peyman Jebelli late last month as the new CEO of the country’s largest media organization, known as the Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting (IRIB).
Jebelli, a 55-year-old communications graduate, hails from the Islamic Stability Front, the most unyielding faction of Iran's influential hard-line camp. Prior to the new promotion, Jebelli worked as the IRIB's World Service deputy, which also made him the head of the 24-hour English news network, Press TV.
Jebelli's tenure at Press TV was marked with deep controversy, particularly with the channel’s contentious coverage of the talks over the restoration of the Iran nuclear deal, which were held in six rounds in Vienna during moderate President Hassan Rouhani's term.
Jebelli's team at Press TV repeatedly broke news from an anonymous "informed source" that would often contradict the positive narrative officially put out by the Iranian negotiating team. Press TV's approach even drew a rare reaction from Abbas Araghchi, the then deputy foreign minister and leading negotiator. “I don't know who the 'informed source' of Press TV in Vienna is, but s/he is certainly not 'informed,'” he tweeted. Jebelli’s team, however, dismissed allegations that they were leading a propaganda campaign to torpedo or postpone a potential deal between Tehran and Washington.
