Author : Jafar Tarin
A Critique of the IRIB Broadcast Unit and Providing Solutions
Before 10 AM today, March 27, 2020, the broadcast of Hollywood’s Transformers 1 on Tamasha TV channel concluded. An action-packed, violent film that showcases America’s superior military, technological, and commercial might. I have previously seen Transformers 1 up to part 5 with this exact same atmosphere; Michael Bay is a successful director who has managed with such a sci-fi genre to influence adult, youth, adolescent, and unfortunately children audiences as well.
The production of this film 10 years ago and subsequently the next installment, Transformers: The Last Knight (Transformers 5), has in fact subtly engraved America’s greatness into the audience’s mind, and the victory of the character Sam at the end of this film as the “savior” has defined and cultivated an unforgettable symbol.
Now, as a media critic, I feel obligated and as a viewer necessary to ask IRIB officials: considering the negative impact of such films, what objectives are they pursuing by broadcasting them!?
Media professionals usually make any works available to public opinion or the target audience based on their outlined objectives and what they have strategized in the think tank.
If the officials of Tamasha TV channel have broadcast Transformers with prior planning and with the knowledge of damaging public opinion, then they must be held accountable. But it seems it is not intentional. In that case, if the reason for injecting such works into the schedule is for the sake of entertainment, know that the program supply managers and the broadcast unit have poor sociology. And if none of the above applies, their lack of expertise will be clear evidence that unfortunately the current plague and problem of IRIB is the lack of expertise, or in other words, “expertise avoidance”.
☀️ Professional ethics, media commitment, and my compassion dictate that I suggest the following items for now:
- IRIB should act according to the psychological conditions of society and the current emerging requirements, which are generally outlined in the policies and objectives of this medium.
- The arrangement of produced and supplied programs in the broadcast schedule of radio networks and the television medium should be organized by audience-aware individuals.
- I remember, for example, during the Sacred Defense and creating the spirit of anti-enemy sentiment, or during the creation of a joyful spirit after the war which was also emphasized by the Leadership, or on national days, and happy birth anniversary occasions, etc., under any special circumstance, the color of the schedule would change according to its relevant requirements and we would program in a way that was worthy of the target audience, and also the method of selecting programs showed the expertise and thought behind it.
Hereby, I now propose that a “think tank” consisting of 3-4 crisis-subject experts, audience specialists, and media literacy science experts be launched in the networks’ broadcast units under the title of “Crisis Broadcast Schedule”. This unit only operates under special conditions, and various programs in diverse genres, with worthy researched content, in an attractive structure, are selected and broadcasted.