Examining Press Challenges in Iran for Offering an Appropriate Managerial Pattern

The aim of this research is to provide an optimal managerial pattern for the press in the Islamic Republic of Iran. The study is an applied research in terms of its objectives, qualitative and quantitative (combined) in terms of the data types, and descriptive and survey research in terms of the implementation process. The statistical population of the research consists of two groups. The first group is the media directors in charge who were invited by the Press and Information Department (of the Ministry of Culture and Islamic Guidance) and participated in the meetings of the specialized working group and helped to determine the factors and their importance in designing the pattern. The second group is the top specialists and veterans of the Iranian press who participated in the specialized meetings at the invitation of the Press and Information Department to examine the future of the press and helped to evaluate the validity of the research pattern. Out of the statistical population of 45 people in the first group, the sample size is determined to be 40 based on the Morgan table. To select the sample size for the model validation, 40 media elites are chosen by using the targeted method.
In the qualitative section, the statistical population includes the upstream documents, texts of speeches, interviews and notifications issued by the late Founder of the Islamic Republic Imam Khomeini (RA) and the Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. The data collection tools are two questionnaires prepared by the researcher. After reviewing all the existing bases and the background of the press challenges in Iran and the world, a list of points of weakness and strength, threats and opportunities is prepared and on this basis questionnaire A of the research is formulated in order to evaluate the status quo. Questionnaire B is completed to determine the degree of suitability of the proposed pattern by the elites of this field
Validity of the research questionnaires is confirmed by using the content validity method and based on the viewpoints of the supervisor and advisor and a number of expert authors in the media and press field after applying limited modifications. The review of theoretical bases and the research history were specified and on the basis of the views expressed by the experts the necessary corrections were applied in the primary form of the questionnaire. In order to determine the reliability of the tools, the questionnaires had been distributed experimentally among 20 people of the statistical population and by using the Cronbach’s alpha coefficient its reliability has been estimated, which was 0.93 for the status quo review questionnaire and 0.87 for the validity questionnaire. The resulting data has been analyzed by using the axial coding method as well as descriptive and inferential statistics (such as the t group, K- S).
The research findings showed that in the study of the documents, dialogues and speeches of Imam Khomeini (RA) and the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Revolution, nine macro policies were identified from Imam Khomeini (RA) viewpoints and 13 from those of the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Revolution.
The presented pattern in the principles and targets of the press policy making section, theoretical framework, the points of weakness and strength, opportunities and threats of the press, the executive process and strategies have been confirmed with 99% confidence by experts. Based on the present research two sections of general and applied proposals were presented.
The following cases can be mentioned among the proposals: Establishment of close relations with foreign press corporations and making efforts to indigenize their path to success, using new technologies to present the country’s written media online, considering as a serious shortcoming the impacts of absence of economic independence of the Iranian press, launching media courses at higher education centers, verifying the ownership weakness index as one of the serious weaknesses of the press. The important point is the novelty of the aforementioned proposals on the basis of the present research and the results obtained from it.