Blog: Going Beyond the State – Part 1: Iran

Title: Going Beyond the State – Part 1: Iran
Author: Sahar Zubairy
Date: Thursday, October 8th, 2009.
Source: http://iran.foreignpolicyblogs.com/tag/world-public-opinionorg/

For my next News Weblog dealing with the much coveted issue regarding the not so secret (anymore) building of Iran’s second nuclear enrichment plant, I decided to examine a platform that I normally do not refer to for news; a blog. I think there is a general consensus and idea that blogs are not credible sources of news as anyone can essentially write one and post it on the net (i.e. citizen journalism). How can these people be held accountable for what they write if they are not under the control of any news agency? However, we can also raise the opposite question by asking how these people can be in fact be more objective then most news agencies as they do not feel direct pressure from the five filters of the propaganda model? Chomsky would argue that this blog is less susceptible to the five filters as these are journalists working independently of huge news corporations.

The specific blog I chose was entitled “Going Beyond the State – Part 1: Iran” published by Sahar Zubairy on Thursday, October the 8th on the World Affairs Blog Network for Iran. I decided to check out the “About” section for the website and this is what it said:

Foreign Policy Blogs is the largest network of global affairs blogs online. Staffed by scores of professional contributors from the worlds of journalism, academia, business, non-profits and think tanks, the FPB network tracks global developments from Afghanistan to Zimbabwe and everywhere in between, daily.

It becomes immediately apparent that the blogger expects the reader to have some degree of informed knowledge regarding the issue at hand as he does not take the time to summarize the topic of Iran and its recent controversial nuclear program. This is clearly different from the previous articles I have examined by the BBC and CNN that give a good outline of the events that have occurred in relation to the discovery of Iran’s second enrichment plant. Thus, one can conclude that news is usually presented differently on blogs because bloggers expect to have some form of reader following who read their blogs on a regular basis. If people take the time to search for these blogs it means that they obviously have some form of interest and knowledge in this subject. Meanwhile, the BBC and CNN who broadcast to millions of people across the globe must always make sure that they are giving all necessary background information for there may always be new listeners (alongside recurrent ones) who are not necessarily aware of the events that previously occurred. If these news corporations simply delved into the latest “installment” of the issue and negated presenting earlier facts that provided a complete understanding, it would lead to a lot of confusion.

Matheson argues in his Discourse Analytic Perspective that a close analysis of the discourse used in a particular headline creates meaning that is not directly transparent. If we deconstruct the meaning of the title into its linguistic formula (word choice, grammar) and the preconceived notions of the media consumer, we begin to understand the particular social reality that is being reinforced. The title “Going Beyond the State” is meant to signify that the people of Iran deserve to have a voice as well. Compare this to the BBC podcast and CNN news article, and it blatantly differs as this article strays away from the people in power that those two news agencies deliberately focus on.

That being said, the blog is mainly focused on presenting Word Public Opinion Polls on how Iranians view their nuclear program and the United States. Thus, another feature of the blog as a news platform is that it can technically be as focused as it wishes to be while completely ignoring and/or omitting other aspects or points of views. Some blogs get all the freedom they want to endorse any idea despite how untruthful or bizarre it may be (note: not specifically this blog as it is composed of a group of concerned journalists and citizens who probably do wish to convey logical thoughts or opinions). In this case, the blog is dedicated to strictly presenting the viewpoints of Iranians in regards to their country’s own nuclear program and their views on the United States. Although this is a subjective outlook on the matter as it only covers the opinions of one side, it is also a breath of fresh air. Rarely, does a seemingly objective collective news source group strictly present the side of what the West and its allies deem as the “problem.” The blog is also only presenting hard statistics and facts and kind of gives the reader the chance to form their own conclusions since the author really does not voice his own opinion.

Overall, I learned a lot about going to a news source that I do not normally go to. In this particular case, I realized just how divided Iranians were on their own nuclear program and how the majority of Iranians have an unfavorable view of the US government even after Obama has taken office. This article really does as its title suggests; it goes beyond the state. The focus of the article is not about the governments and political powers involved but the people.