President visits IRNA as news organization celebrates 90th founding anniversary
President Masoud Pezeshkian has paid a visit to the Islamic Republic News Agency (IRNA) headquarters in the capital, Tehran, as the news organization celebrates its 90th founding anniversary.
President Pezeshkian visited IRNA on Saturday. He was accompanied by the esteemed Minister of Culture and Islamic Guidance Abbas Salehi, Director of Government Information Council Elias Hazrati, Hazrati’s deputy, Mehdi Tabatabai, Political Deputy of the Presidential Office Mehdi Sanayi, and presidential aide Yousef Pezeshkian.
The president and the other dignitaries were welcomed by IRNA’s CEO Hossein Jaberi-Ansari and Deputy for News Javad Daliri before meeting with directors-general, managers, and chief editors from the news organization’s various services.
Pezeshkian also visited IRNA’s newsroom, where he was briefed on how the news report is prepared.
During the president’s visit to the news agency, IRNA’s 90th anniversary stamp and a book of oral history of the organization were unveiled.
'Speak the truth when delivering news'
Speaking during the visit, President Pezeshkian said timely and accurate dissemination of information is an urgent necessity for society, as the enemy works through spreading lies, slander, and accusations.
“We must be straightforward with the people and speak the truth when delivering news,” he said. “Today, falsehoods are widely spread in the media and on the internet, while there is no greater sin than lying.”
Elsewhere in his speech, the president said it was unacceptable that a country as rich in resources as Iran lags behind in standard of living while certain neighboring nations enjoy higher welfare standards.
“We are not inferior to them, and we must manage and plan in a way that ensures dignity and a high-quality life for all our people. No one will come to reform us—it is we who must change our own behavior.”
According to President Pezeshkian, other states, particularly those sitting on the other side of the world, cannot dictate the Iranian nation’s future.
“We must determine our own destiny and join hands to achieve our goal in our own way,” he said, adding that only a shift in perspective is needed to reach the goals.
