Michelle May

Is it just me or are you not a bit suspicious about the motives around all the current news coverage of Iran in America?  Of course, it was personal mission for the past three years to have more coverage of the “real people” of Iran, rather than all the stale sterotypes that were left in our subconscious since 1979.  In June i felt elated to see the entire world seeing images of modern Iranians- the Iranians who i also met traveling there who dislike some of their leaders, and want moderate reform.  It was inpsiring to see people in my country actually care & give a damn about a nation and people who i hold so dear.  However, now if you look at a news site such as CNN and go to their middle east section 90% of what you see is about Iran- horrible things that stand out in headlines.  But there are also other countries in the world who do just as atrocious, if not more atrocious things- why are those stores not told?  Is it because we do business with them &/or even SPONSOR it?

As the summer wore on I was forced to get out of my Iran bubble- I traveled to other countries of the Middle East & saw that as expected, they too have been unfairly misrepresented.  My summer ended by seeing a family i care very much for be illegally evicted from their home in an act which the international community - including the United States- deplored.  Why then was there virtually no coverage of this in US media?  I am left to believe that it is in some lobby group’s interests to further this vilification of Iran (with all due respect to those in Iran) while irresponsibly ignoring what goes on on other countries. 

Why are some stories covered by the media & then others not? 

I have nothing but love & support or the regular everyday people of Iran, but  I am a bit worried about the repercusions of all the media coverage.  Some people in this world want to launch war on Iran - that will do nothing to truly help Iranian’s cause- just as we have seen in other nations.  I will be blunt in saying that i think the continued choice coverage of Iran is just the beating the drums of war.  If this coverage was truly only out of concern for fellow mankind & justice we would be hearing these same stories about other nations where the injustice is even more severe- and at times in places where we actually have and currently do fund such acts.  I am not saying we should not be following what happens in Iran- i am saying that we should also fairly present what happens in other places.

Let me end by saying:  I have grown tired of the double standard in our mainstream media- I am tired of certain stories of some races being ignored.  I am tired of people who are so close-minded that they do not look at people as human beings and instead only look at their race or religion- with an inherit unstated assumption that some people’s lives are more valuable than others.  This in fact has nothing to do with religion- it is just politics, greed & overt racism.  Don’t be fooled by both the formal media & the entertainment you have been exposed to your whole life.  Try to keep an open mind.  Try to get out & see these things/places/people for yourself & then give me your opinon… 

Tags: Iran, media bias, protests.