January 05, 2018

How Washington Helps Tehran Control the Internet

Source: Foreign Policy

Journalist: Elias Groll

When thousands of Iranians streamed onto the country’s streets in the last week to protest government corruption and the dilapidated economy, authorities in Tehran reverted to a well-known playbook.

On Sunday, the government shut down Telegram, a messaging platform used by more than 40 million Iranians. Instagram and other social media soon followed.

The mullahs’ intentions were clear: to block access to digital platforms used by protesters to spread information about the uprising. But the government’s crackdown found support from a surprising source — the American sanctions regime.

Read the full article here.

Author

  • Peter Harrell

    Former Adjunct Senior Fellow, Energy, Economics and Security Program

    Peter Harrell is a former adjunct senior fellow at the Center for a New American Security. He is a leading expert on U.S. economic statecraft, including sanctions, export cont...