Iran struggles to shape narrative on US talks
Contributor
Some Iranian media appear frustrated with unreliable and contradictory reports on the ongoing Iran-US negotiations, while the official narrative has struggled to gain traction with the public.
On Thursday, the moderate conservative outlet Khabar Online questioned the credibility of reports based on unnamed "informed sources," describing such coverage as “destructive” and driven by factional interests. The website criticized “political celebrities” who allegedly fabricate news to maintain their public profile and called out media outlets publishing such content as “unprofessional.”
In particular, Khabar Online targeted Tehran Times, a hardline English-language daily, for its report ahead of the Oman talks, which quoted anonymous sources as claiming the Americans were only wasting time. The article labeled Tehran Times’ reporting as "irrelevant." The same paper also quoted a source who said the US had no intention of holding constructive negotiations with Iran—an assertion later contradicted by both Tehran and Washington, which described the talks as “positive and constructive.”
Tehran Times is affiliated with the Islamic Propagation Office, a body dominated by hardliners. During the 2014–2015 negotiations that led to the nuclear deal, similar tactics were observed. Press TV, Iran’s English-language state news channel, frequently aired misleading stories intended to undermine the talks. At the time, Press TV was headed by Peyman Jebelli—now the head of state broadcasting, overseeing dozens of Persian and foreign-language channels that continue to distort news about the current negotiations.
Back then, deputy foreign minister Abbas Araghchi publicly criticized Press TV’s reliance on so-called informed sources, saying: “Whoever gives fake news to Press TV as an 'informed source' is certainly not an informed person.” Later, former presidential chief of staff Mahmoud Vaezi blamed Ali Shamkhani and Nour News, a media outlet linked to him, for deliberately trying to derail the talks. Shamkhani was then serving as secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council.
He and his family have been implicated with involvement in operations to sell Iranian oil in contravention of current US sanctions.
More recently, conservative commentator Mohammad Mohajeri remarked that “around 90 percent of what is attributed to 'informed sources' is fabricated.” He added that such individuals often blend truth with fiction and lack the courage to identify themselves.
Media activists in Iran have long accused state television and hardline outlets like the Kayhan daily—closely linked to Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei—of manipulating the news. As a result, public trust has eroded. According to several domestic and international surveys, Iranians now rely more heavily on social media and foreign-based Persian-language broadcasters for news.
Amid this credibility gap, some officials have sought to exploit the confusion. Following widespread rumors on social media that Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi had taken a valuable golden pen from the negotiating table in Oman, he dismissed the story days later as a fabrication by foreign-based opposition groups. But by then, the narrative had already taken root and spread widely.
A similar pattern emerged in the episode surrounding the change of venue for the second round of talks—from Oman to Rome. Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmail Baghaei initially reacted with a post on X accusing the US of lacking seriousness and commitment. Days later, Gharibabadi attempted to downplay the shift, calling it a “minor development.” But by then, the damage was done. The episode also revealed what Iranian officials appeared keen to conceal: that it was the United States, not Iran, that ultimately determined the venue of the talks.
