Everything changed in March 2000. Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, accused “15 or 16” publications of “acting as the enemy’s fifth column.” He ordered them shuttered without naming them. Since then, almost 30 more have been closed, and dozens of journalists have been thrown in jail–where some still sit. Gone are the fancy digs; editors prefer cramped, cheap apartments, the better to keep low profiles. Staffs are skeletal. In Iran’s recent elections, newspapers did little to challenge conservative candidates. It’s a far cry from two years ago, when parliamentary candidates endorsed by reform-minded papers garnered the highest votes in Iran’s cities. Though Iran now touts itself as a “democracy,” its boast can’t stand the scrutiny of a free press.
