http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20051220...EohaJys0NUE;_ylu=X3oDMTA3b2NibDltBHNlYwM3MTY- By NASSER KARIMI, Associated Press Writer2 hours, 5 minutes ago Hard-line President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has banned all Western music from Iran's state radio and TV stations — an eerie reminder of the 1979 Islamic revolution when popular music was outlawed as "un-Islamic" under Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini. Today, though, the sounds of hip-hop can be heard blaring from car radios in Tehran's streets, and Eric Clapton's "Rush" and the Eagles' "Hotel California" regularly accompany Iranian broadcasts. No more — the official IRAN Persian daily reported Monday that Ahmadinejad, as head of the Supreme Cultural Revolutionary Council, ordered the enactment of an October ruling by the council to ban all Western music, including classical music, on state broadcast outlets. "Blocking indecent and Western music from the Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting is required," according to a statement on the council's official Web site. The Iranian guitarist Babak Riahipour lamented what he called a "terrible" decision. "The decision shows a lack of knowledge and experience," he said. Music was outlawed by Khomeini soon after the 1979 revolution; Khomeini claimed it was "intoxicating." Many musicians went abroad and built an Iranian music industry in Los Angeles. But as revolutionary fervor started to fade, some light classical music was allowed on Iranian radio and television; some public concerts reappeared in the late 1980s. But later, Khomeini allowed classical music to be played over state radio. Since his death, pop music has been creeping into Iranian shops. In the 1990s, particularly during the presidency of reformist Mohammad Khatami starting in 1997, authorities began relaxing restrictions further. These days in Iran, Western music, films and clothing are widely available in Iran. Bootleg videos and DVDs of films banned by the state are widely available on the black market. However, women are prohibited from singing in public, except to a segregated female-only audience. Hard-liners were afraid the voice of a woman soloist might arouse impure thoughts in men. Women are allowed to sing as part of a chorus. Ahmadinejad's order means the state broadcasting authority must execute the decree and prepare a report on its implementation within six months, according to the IRAN Persian daily. Earlier this month, Ali Rahbari, conductor of Tehran's symphony orchestra, resigned and left Iran to protest the treatment of the music industry in Iran. Before leaving, he played Beethoven's Ninth Symphony to packed Tehran theater houses over several nights last month — its first performance in Tehran since the 1979 revolution. The performances angered many conservatives and prompted newspaper columns accusing Rahbari of promoting Western values. The ban applies to state-run radio and TV. But Iranians with satellite dishes can get broadcasts originating outside the country. Ahmadinejad won office in August on a platform of reverting to ultraconservative principles, following eight years of reformist-led rule under Khatami. During his presidential campaign, Ahmadinejad also promised to confront what he called the Western cultural invasion of Iran and promote Islamic values. Since then, Ahmadinejad has jettisoned Iran's moderation in foreign policy and pursued a purge in the government, replacing pragmatic veterans with former military commanders and inexperienced religious hard-liners. He also has issued stinging criticisms of Israel, calling for the Jewish state to be "wiped off the map" and describing the Nazi Holocaust as a "myth." International concerns are high over Iran's nuclear program, with the United States accusing Tehran of pursuing an atomic weapons program. Iran denies the claims. The latest media ban also includes censorship of content of films. "Supervision of content from films, TV series and their voice-overs is emphasized in order to support spiritual cinema and to eliminate triteness and violence," the council said in a statement on its Web site. The council has also issued a ban on foreign movies that promote "arrogant powers," an apparent reference to the United States. The prohibitions mirror those imposed in neighboring Afghanistan during the Taliban regime, which imposed a strict version of Islamic law, including a ban on music and film. The Taliban was ousted by a U.S.-led coalition in late 2001. ______ looks like it's back to the stone ages...
Doesn't matter. They get everything over there before we get it sometimes through europe....there is enough underground selling of good there that are supposidly banned.
add iran to the list of countries that are unimportant. current list: iran iraq russia sibera north korea. any country ending with STAN
honestly, who really gives a crap what they do... they cant cntrol what ppl dload off the internet, nor can they control what pppl get off of dish sattelites... so people that wanna get that, will get theirs.
Well, it just goes to show what a backwards place they live in. Yes, and what happens if they are caught breaking the law in this manner? Amputation of limbs? Death? I wouldn't put it past those nut jobs.
the president of iran is impotent. he doesn't hold real power. thats why we dont think iran is democratic remember people.
and in our country the government spies on us... im sure there are tons of places that would find that more offensive than banning a few genre's of music why dont you figure out what the punishment is before assuming crap like that.
It's pretty pathetic to me how much this countries views and ideas are based off of bias and crap they see on TV. Its like the only education some people have and it's pretty sad to be honest. My parents are Iranian but i was born and raised here. I went back to Iran for the first time last year after hearing a bunch of crap that i see here and some of the same bias. But when i did see it first hand i noticed it's nothing like people think it really is over there. Im not going to be the first one to say that they aren't backward in some ways that they think but that is honestly the crappy ass government that is leading them. The majority doesn't agree with those beliefs and it's not like their vote really does matter in the long run. At the same time i just believe some comments by people on the board just show how ignorant they are towards other cultures, becuase every single one has it's quarks and crap that is different. I could care less if it is Iran or any other country for that matter but is sucks that some people have such a narrow outlook on life and instead of actually trying to learn about how things are and why they are that way; they make their own assumptions and close it off in their minds. If you honestly have that narrow of a mind to think those things your honestly no better than the piece of crap goverment that is running my country. That's the whole problem. They don't really see a broader view on things and it's bringing the damn country down which sucks. You are only bringing yourself down when you look at it with a closed mind. I just believe that you have to honestly take a look at all aspects of things before making narrowminded comments and not knowing what everything is really about. What's the difference of them banning something like western music and the US banning Weed or something like that. It's legal in most european countries. That doesn't make the US any worse than those countries becuase they ban something that they find legal. We have our own fair of censorship and things you are not allowed to do. On a final note this president IS a moron and definently making stupid ass moves and i don't condone for a minute any of his views. So it's a shame to only move backwards when the country was moving forward under the last president...all be it very slowly.
Iran's treatment of women is so utterly despicable that 'backwards' is the most generous term one could use to describe it. You think eavesdropping on al Qaeda calls in the US is bad, adeelsiddiqui? How about stoning a woman to death for not being a virgin at her wedding? Ouch.
It's always amusing to me to see liberals who criticize the US for every error it makes completely change their tune when it comes to other countries. The US spied on some of its own citizens who may be terrorists? "WE ARE BECOMING A FASCIST STATE! NO WONDER THE WORLD HATES US!" Iran bans music? "Oh, it doesn't really matter. No big deal. (Besides, US policies probably caused this anyways.)"
so is saudi arabia's, but they are our friends...err, buisness partners. it doesnt matter how brutal a regime is, as long as we can make some money off them. its not just the banning of western music, but iran seems to be quickly moving in a real bad direction under this guy. last week was the holocaust comments, this week the banning of western music. hes obviously going to go for the trifecta. so whats next?
Is it equally amusing when conservatives don't take a President acting contrary to the constitution seriously, and justifying by saying that, "Hey wha'ts wrong about our president usurping power? We aren't as bad the theocracy in Iran." I don't blame liberals or anyone else for wanting a higher bench mark than "not as bad as Iran". If "not as bad as Iran" is the highest you set your standards for our nation, then I encourage you to dream a little. It is also possible to criticize Iran for this move, and to want our President to not spy on citizens, and live up to his sworn duty to preserve the constitution rather than act contrary to it.
I'm a liberal and I will say IT IS STUPID. There is nothing to defend. He is banning even light classical music as if it is threatening. I mean I understand the banning Kenny G., but the guy is trying to ban thought itself. This is just pure ignorance. There is no other way to explain it.
If someone goes over there and starts dancing they can win the hand of the mullah's beautiful and rebellious daughter.
