Media and Religion: Study of Effects and Functions of Airing Religious Rites on IRIB

The history of relationships between the media and religion dates back to the advent of printing industry. Since then setting an appropriate and influential relationship between religion and mass media as well as organizing functions, and also offering mechanisms to help effective establishment of these relationships have been under consideration. The purpose of this study is to examine the relationship between religion and modern media, and to find reasonable answers to the questions whether media are instrumental in nature and are used to remove religion from the society or they are neutral tools that could assist in promotion of religion. Philosophical, sociological and historical approaches within the framework of desk research were utilized to answer these questions. Applying each of these approaches, we are faced with a spectrum of opinions leading to the two extremes of ‘technological determinism’ and ‘instrumentalism’. Moreover, considering the attempts made by the Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting (IRIB) to apply the expected functions of modern media within the framework of religious instructions and moral virtues, this paper deals with how it is possible to propagate and advertise religious affairs in the vast realm of public media’s audiences in order to encourage people not interested in these types of programs and turn them into active audiences. For this, after enumerating characteristics of ‘religious media’ based on experimental evidence, a model of media rites is introduced for Iran and other parts of the world. Then, some form of this model will be studied in the Iranian society. Finally, the necessity of planning based on this model will be specified. Results show that “live” broadcast of religious rituals on IRIB before having positive impacts has negative impacts. Nonetheless, turning religious contents into “media programs” within a showpiece in an artistic form could have dual and positive effects. That is to say that for believers in religion it could offer some religious awareness and passion and for those who are not interested in religious issues it could act as an entertaining and interesting program.