Iran designing its own version of the Internet

Re:Iran designing its own version of the Internet by moo on Thursday September 20, 2012 @03:27AM (#4547477)

The West also censors. My understanding is Britain censored Press TV for spurious reasons using front organization Ofcom. French embassy refused visas for Iranian reporters. Germany also blocks Iranian news. Noam Chomsky, an old man who preaches the Golden Rule, was refused entry into Israel. Lily Sussman had Arab characters taped on her laptop keys and the Israeli border security shot holes through it. Fretting about another countries surveillance on its citizens seems a little silly today. Ahmadinejad was also elected, the electorate preferred potatoes over Western appeals to be able to wear bikinis.

[ Parent | on HN ]

Re:Iran designing its own version of the Internet by __alexs on Thursday September 20, 2012 @04:45AM (#4547669)

I'm not saying that we don't have a fascist government willing to censor anything they don't like the look of but the Press TV thing might not be the best example.

They had their license revoked after broadcasting a "confession" by Canadian journalist Maziar Bahari that was conducted after torturing him and under threat of execution.

Then they apparently admitted to being editorially controlled by their Iranian branch, who are not licensed to broadcast in the UK.

http://stakeholders.ofcom.org.uk/enforcement/broadcast-licen...

If they were any good at the international diplomacy soft power game they'd have just made sure only pro-Iranian people got hired to work at Press TV. Kind of like RT and Al Jazeera.

[ Parent | on HN ]

Re:Iran designing its own version of the Internet by moo on Thursday September 20, 2012 @06:42AM (#4547898)

I've read nothing about there having been torture. Bahari claims the interview with Press TV was under duress. The journalist was held a total of 4 months. Bahari claims he had to condemn the west to gain release. The 10 second clip Ofcom uses to incriminate is: “On Monday, 15 June [2009], I sent a report about the attack against the base, a military base of Basij to Channel 4 News as well as to Newsweek Magazine.”

Nothing there is a condemnation of the West. http://www.presstv.ir/detail/181727.html According to Wikileaks the West has been trying to remove Press TV's broadcast.

[ Parent | on HN ]

Re:Iran designing its own version of the Internet by __alexs on Thursday September 20, 2012 @08:18AM (#4548122)

He claims to have been beaten by his guards in numerous ways while in prison. http://www.channel4.com/news/articles/uk/maziar%2Bbahari%2Ba...

"Of course there was some physical torture. He beat me, hit me with a belt, punched and kicked me but to me the scarier parts were these conversations because I could see he had a very wrong view of the world.

[ Parent | on HN ]

Re:Iran designing its own version of the Internet by guard-of-terra on Thursday September 20, 2012 @04:47AM (#4547674)

Under "potatoes", do you mean something like the promise by Ahmadinejad to spend money earned by Iran to feed Iranian citisens?

If the answer is yes, don't you see a fatal flaw in such political programme?

[ Parent | on HN ]

Re:Iran designing its own version of the Internet by moo on Thursday September 20, 2012 @06:54AM (#4547917)

It's called redistribution of wealth.

[ Parent | on HN ]