“The supreme administrative court in Bavaria state argues that Press TV must not use satellite services for broadcast in Germany. The surprising ruling comes just months after a Munich court ruled twice that Press TV can broadcast on SES Astra platform in the country. The Munich media regulatory body, BLM, had taken Press TV off the satellite platform in April. It said Press TV lacked the necessary license. Press TV lawyers subsequently took legal action against the BLM and won the case. BLM appealed but its plea was rejected by the Munich administrative court. The issue was then referred to the state court in Bavaria that ruled in favor of taking Press TV off the air. Press TV says the German government seeks to silence the alternative channel’s voice. It says the ban was meant to stop the channel’s extensive coverage of Germany’s social and economic issues. The channel has also covered the growing public anger in Germany over that country’s military involvement in Afghanistan. …………….”


Press TV is the main Iranian English-language television news network. It gives out the Iranian government position on regional and world events. It is in the same position as, say, Alarabiya which gives the Saudi government position on regional and world events. In some ways it is like the BBC or VOA, certainly a bit less independent. Last January the British government banned Iran’s Press TV, a surprising thing since the network’s programming is relatively mild. Perhaps the network was banned because its programs seemed too reasonable, not the usual expected rabble-rousing that would turn off people.
Soon later, the British Foreign Secretary William Hague, in a show of supreme chutzpah, complained loudly when the Iranians in March blocked a British propaganda program aimed at Iran. The Iranian regime normally blocks many foreign networks and websites: they certainly are not strong believers in free speech. But the British are ‘supposed’ to be. At the time I called it in one of my posts here Mutual Hypocrisy.

Now the Germans are becoming too sensitive when someone else criticizes them, although again it is the Iranians who don’t allow free speech in their own country. Yet this is the West, that is the East, and the twain are not supposed to meet in censorship. And I had thought that free speech in Europe covers all sources of speech. What a silly notion.