Typology of Constitutional Assembly Experts' Attitude to the Media in 1979

The press and media publication rights and freedom are part of individual and public rights and freedom, a structural and fundamental element. For the first time in the history of this land, Mashrutiat Constitution recognized the rights of the press. The Constitutional Assembly of the Islamic Republic of Iran also included the same rights in the new constitution with minor changes. Authors and legislators have dedicated four principles to the rights and dignity of the press and mass media. The main question in this article is: What was the value of the position and rights of the media from the perspective of constitutional experts? Using descriptive-analytical methods, the authors, after examining the theoretical foundations of law and the position of the media in today's world, have extracted and explained seven viewpoints from the Constitutional Assembly negotiations: utilitarian instrument, restrictive, strategic, criminal, supervisory, eclectic and two types of legalist attitude. With a brief explanation of the meaning of each, the authors have examined and categorized the negotiations and views that have been raised on the principles mentioned in the Constitutional Assembly. The results of the study show that in addition to their being considered as today’s fundamental rights, the media gained some ethical value as a result of the religious and revolutionary nature of the new legal-political system. Also, much attention was paid to the institution of the press and media, but only the press as a whole was discussed, and the rights of journalists and members of the media were not specifically mentioned.