When does misinformation work? It works when it plays to existing prejudices and assumptions and when it is broadcast loudly and widely enough. Then it will do its pernicious work however strenuously the lies and distortions are subsequently denied and exposed.
Last Friday, the National Post published a front-page story that reported that Iran's parliament had passed a law outlining proper dress for Muslims that included an order for Jews, Christians and Zoroastrians to wear special strips of cloth (yellow for Jews, red for Christians and blue for Zoroastrians).
The story, sourced to "Iranian expatriates," was of dubious provenance. With a little effort, it could have been verified. A quick call to a few Iranian journalists in Tehran, for instance, would have authenticated the story if it were true.
But the story played to fears and assumptions about Iran. In the current climate of relations between Iran and the West, Western news stories that make Iran appear like Nazi Germany apparently don't need to be authenticated before Western and Israeli politicians jump to attention. Prime Minister Stephen Harper, one of the first to the pillory post, said such a law would not be out of line for Iran. "Unfortunately, we've seen enough already from the Iranian regime to suggest that it is very capable of this kind of action. It boggles the mind that any regime on the face of the Earth would want to do anything that could remind people of Nazi Germany." In Israel, Internal Security Minister Avi Dichter declared: "Whoever makes Jews anywhere wear the yellow star again will find themselves in a coffin draped in black."
But there was no such Iranian measure. Iran's parliament did pass a bill on clothing on May 15, as the National Post reported. But the bill did not outline proper dress for Iranians and it did not mention any religious or ethnic minorities, let alone order Jews to wear yellow cloth strips. As Maurice Motamed, the Jewish representative in Iran's parliament, told the Financial Times, "When I heard this, I immediately felt it was a mischievous act, a fresh means of pressure against the Iranian government. We representatives for religious minorities are active in the parliament, and there has never been any mention of such a thing."
The main thrust of the bill was to protect Iranian "national dress" by providing financial support to Iranian garment manufacturers and designers who are being undercut by cheap imports of new and second-hand clothing. But, by the time the real story got out, the damage had been done: one more confirmation that Iran is a reincarnation of Nazi Germany and that the Islamist regime is ripe for toppling.
So where did the story come from? The main identifiable source of the story was a commentary on the inside pages of the National Post by Iranian expatriate journalist Amir Taheri. Mr. Taheri belongs to the unrepentant right of the neo-conservative camp in the United States. He still thinks the war in Iraq was a good idea and blames the current crisis of U.S. confidence in Iraq on distorted and sensational reporting by the U.S. media rather than on the reality of a country in the grip of military occupation and sliding into civil war.
Long an outspoken critic of the mullahs in Iran, Mr. Taheri is a leading advocate for the overthrow of the Islamist regime. He is tireless in "exposing" the threatening designs and capabilities of the government in Tehran. He is also a harsh critic of Western moves to negotiate with (i.e. "appease") the Iranian regime.
After the Post story was exposed as baseless, Mr. Taheri issued a statement that he stands by his commentary. "It seems that some media outlets used my column as the basis for reports that jumped the gun." The Post, meanwhile, published an "our mistake" yesterday.
The road to war in Iraq was paved with misinformation. It appears those advocating the overthrow of the Iranian regime have embarked on a similar path of distortion and media manipulation to prevent a peaceful resolution of the crisis over Iran's nuclear program. One does not have to be an apologist for Iran to hope these warmongers fail in their effort.
Tom Porteous is a syndicated columnist and author, formerly with the BBC and the British Foreign Office.