'LA Times' Faces Fewer Obstacles in Iran Coverage -- AP Seeks to Overcome 'Restrictions'

By: Joe Strupp Foreign Editor Bruce Wallace of the Los Angeles Times says his two reporters in Iran -- Borzou Daragahi and Ramin Mostaghim -- are not coming near the restrictions many others are finding. At least not yet.

Daragahi, who is based in Beirut for the Times and has an Iranian passport, has been in Iran since June 1, Wallace says. Even with the push for those with expiring visas to depart, Daragahi is able to stay, for the moment.

"Borzou has been able to move around, he has been filing and he has been able to do his job," Wallace told E&P Tuesday afternoon, just a half hour after last speaking with Daragahi. "He hasn't been asked to leave."

The Times' other correspondent there, Mostaghim, has been on the paper's payroll for at least a year, Wallace said. As a local citizen, he is also in place to cover as needed without fear of deportation.

Wallace said the paper has received at least three stories per day from the reporters, either with co-bylines or individually. They also have blogged, with their last post
on Sunday at the paper's Babylon and Beyond blog.

"We have been able to feed our Web sites," Wallace said.

Still, Wallace noted that he is limited to photos from wire services and other outlets: "We are using art from the various agencies. But images are also being taken by Iranians themselves."

He adds that much of the coverage from his reporters has had to be Tehren-focused because they are not going beyond the city. He did not indicate if that was due to safety or their own choosing.

"Information from other parts of Iran is the hardest stuff to get," he said, adding that security has not had to be increased since the Friday elections sparked protests. "The difficulties are the same as everywhere, logistics -- traffic, time, and getting around. [Daragahi] is very security conscious."

The case is apparently different at the Associated Press and some other news outlets. AP reported earlier today about new efforts to restrict the sending of information and plans to begin expelling journalists with expiring visas.

AP Executive Editor Kathleen Carroll said in a statement to E&P: "Our reason for being in Iran is to cover news. That's what we work hard to do every day in all the places in the world where we have journalists. We also operate within the laws and guidelines for media in those places.

"Clearly, when our journalists can't go out and see things and talk to people, our ability to tell the story is not as good as when we are able to go out and report. While it is not common for our journalists to be restricted, it is also not rare. When that happens, we work with those restrictions, keeping in mind our ultimate goal is to be able to do our jobs as journalists."