The Iranian Government’s Media Policy toward Mainstream Media during the COVID-19 Crisis: An Analysis of Field Journalists’ Perspectives"

This study examines the role of Iranian government media policies in shaping both the scope and nature of mainstream media engagement during the COVID-19 pandemic. Employing a qualitative case study approach, data were collected through semi-structured interviews with 20 Iranian journalists directly involved in news reporting and content production throughout the pandemic period (2019–2022). Thematic analysis was applied to analyze the interview data. Findings reveal that government policies manifested in several forms: advisory warnings and pre-publication censorship regarding coverage of crisis red lines, instrumental and propagandistic approaches by crisis authorities toward official media, information secrecy, news concealment, and dissemination of distorted data, restricted access to and limited accountability of crisis authorities, and centralization of crisis communication and media management. These findings underscore the influence of extra-media gatekeeping by political actors and governing institutions, as well as the effects of political pressures including censorship, fear of reprisal, coercion and intimidation by state actors, regulatory interventions, intertwined economic and political interests of media organizations, and deliberate management and manipulation of information under state media policies. Moreover, the results reflect the pervasive impact of an authoritarian normative system on the official media landscape in Iran, shaping both the content and practices of mainstream media during the crisis.