“What is the legacy of Ruhollah Khomeini?” was the subject of the most recent Pargar (compass) program on the Persian Service of BBC TV. The program bills itself as “Compass, questions for all Seasons.”
Unfortunately during this last program, the full identity of one of the participants was not revealed by the BBC. If it were, it would have made the ideology behind her dogged defense of Ayatollah Khomeini clearer for the viewers.
On the program’s website, the green clad Washington based woman is identified only as a participant in a two person panel which would pose questions to the two guests. However, during the program, along with her name she is identified only as a “student.”
The scuttlebutt has it that she is the daughter of the former IRR, Islamist Rapist Republic, ambassador to Romania and is married to the site administrator of Jaras. That site, Jaras, belongs to the former two terms Prime Minister of IRR during Khomeini’s lifetime when the mass murders of thousands of Iranian prisoners took place.
Given her unapologetic defense of the murderous Khomeini, her affiliation to IRR and the current in-house “opposition”, i.e. former PM Mousavi, is of material importance which the BBC chose to deny its viewers.
If the above information about her true identity is accurate, then BBC needs to rectify this at best oversight and issue a public apology for unintentionally withholding pertinent information. And if it chooses to not do so, then shame on BBC for stacking the deck.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/persian/tv/2010/02/000000_ptv_pargar.shtml