Table 2 The key actor in the relationship between media and politics

Actor

- The state regime (key actor)

Influential period

- 1978-present

Reason

- Promoting socialist economic values (and some liberal values and concepts like entrepreneurship) in recent years (particularly in the mid-1990s)

- Promoting Islamic and revolutionary values

- Propagating the idea of enmity between Iran and Western countries, specifically the USA

- Mobilizing public masses against pro-Western elites

Influence on media politics

- Dominating media ownership

- Dominating media content production

- Controlling media by censorship/filtering and other suppression means

- Handling key media infrastructures like ASPs or broadcasting

- Banning alternative infrastructures like satellite TV or private ASPs