TEHRAN - On May 5, 1979, the first edition of the Tehran Times was born into a world of transformation. As we celebrate our 47th anniversary, we aren't just looking back at nearly half a century of archives—we are celebrating a living, breathing mission.

With more than 15,300 issues printed, we have transitioned from a local newspaper into a global necessity: the English-language voice of a nation that refuses to be silenced.

The newsroom as a battlefield

For a journalist at the Tehran Times, history isn't something you read about the next morning; it is something you breathe. Our legacy is forged in the fires of the eight-year war of the 1980s, the sharp 12-day conflict of June 2025, and the intense US-Israeli war that began two months ago.

In the course of the 39-day conflict that began on February 28, my colleagues and I did not sleep a wink. The windows of our media building rattled as the vicinity was targeted in the early stages of the war, but the keyboards never stopped clicking. Even during Nowruz, while families across Iran were gathered around the Haft-sin table, our newsroom was alive with the hum of servers and the urgent rush to meet deadlines. We weren't just reporting events; we were living inside them.

In those 39 days leading up to the ceasefire, we learned that journalism is more than a profession—it is a continuous responsibility. We worked day and night—print, online, and social media—to ensure that while the world looked at Iran, they were actually hearing from Iran.

The story the world refuses to see

Western media often paints a picture of a society on the brink of collapse, but from the windows of our newsroom, we saw a different reality. We saw a nation that remained remarkably, stubbornly alive.

While we reported on the human dimension—the hospitals, schools, and neighborhoods under pressure—we also saw the metro stations packed with commuters and the shops staying open until late. Even in the darkest evenings, people walked the streets of Tehran, maintaining the rhythm of normal life under abnormal conditions. This is the resilience that rarely makes it to the global headlines. In many international media systems, conflict is highlighted, but the continuity of everyday life is made invisible. We are here to make it visible again.

Breaking the hegemony

The Tehran Times is not just a newspaper; it is a diplomatic bridge. Because we speak the global language of English, we reach the corridors of power that other Iranian media cannot. This is why you will find foreign ambassadors and senior officials from across the globe visiting our offices. It is why world leaders and top-tier diplomats choose our pages to publish their articles and state their visions.

We sit at the very heart of Iran’s diplomacy, acting as a corrective to an incomplete global picture. For too long, Western institutions have dominated public opinion, filtering the stories of the Global South through their own pre-existing assumptions. This creates a structural imbalance where our voices are interpreted rather than heard.

We believe that the era of media hegemony must end. The Global South is no longer a peripheral audience; we are the narrators of our own destiny. The Tehran Times is dedicated to breaking the monopoly on information, ensuring that our readers abroad and our visitors at home see the full, unvarnished truth of our nation.

As we celebrate 47 years and over 15,300 chapters of our story, we remain committed to the belief that journalism is not just about what happens—it is about whose voice is heard. At the Tehran Times, we ensure your voice is heard.