US ISP Terminates Iranian News Website

grcumb writes "BBC News Online is reporting that the 'semi-official' Iranian Student News Agency has had its contract arbitrarily terminated by the US hosting service The Planet. Quoted in the Central Asian & Southern Caucasian Freedom of Expression Network, an ISNA spokesman said, "Eliminating the site of ISNA, a media outlet widely accessed around the world, is against informatics laws and runs counter to the rhetoric about the free flow of information and the principle of freedom to access information and news,". The BBC Reports that Iranian government officials were quick to accuse the US administration of pressuring The Planet to terminate the contract. So what should we make of this? Government conspiracy, corporate arrogance, or the proper sanctioning of the mouthpiece of an oppressive regime? " As the submittor says, details are virtually unknown about this - my research shows some calling the ISNA a 'bastion of freedom' to other saying it's run by flunkies of the old men of Iran; definitely not cut and dried one way or another.

Comments

Fox!

[Anonymous Coward]

... the proper sanctioning of the mouthpiece of an oppressive regime?

Shut down Fox!

Re:On the side of The Planet

[the_mad_poster]

Sir, this is Slashdot, the Usenet of the web. Your sensibility and level-headed approach to a murky situation is not appreciated here.

Re:Servers are private property.

[Chibi]

"y'all have no right to expect a contract to be honoured"

I suddenly have an image of the US South under British rule... :)

"Bloody hell, Cleetus, I think this boy is biting his thumb at me!"

Re:+5, Funny

[Red Moose]

even well-informed Westerners would have a difficult time getting a pulse reading, even with their finger on the vein.

I'm being an asshole pointing this out, but you get pulses from the arteries, not veins.