News Tip: Duke Experts Available to Comment on Situation in Iran

Tuesday, June 23, 2009

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DURHAM, N.C. -- For more than a week, demonstrators have filled the streets of Tehran to protest alleged vote fraud in the recent Iranian presidential elections. The continually unfolding events are playing out in a number of new media channels, including Twitter and YouTube, as international media has been restricted from front-line reporting.

The following Duke University experts are available to comment on this situation:

Mohsen Kadivar, visiting professor in the department of religion and the Duke Islamic Studies Center, is an senior expert on Islamic philosophy, theology and jurisprudence. A theorist behind Iran's democracy movement, he is author of more than 13 books reconciling Islamic traditions and modern democracy.

Negar Mottahedeh, associate professor of literature and women’s studies, is an expert on Iranian film and author of “Displaced Allegories,” a book on post-revolutionary Iranian cinema. She is available to comment on the use of new media, as well as the role of visual images, in the ongoing demonstrations in Iran.