Iran culture minister praises IRNA as 'important asset'

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'IRNA, with a history of 83 years, is an important asset for the country,' Abbas Salehi said during a ceremony held to introduce new chief of the official news agency at IRNA's Headquarters in Tehran on Monday.

'Today, the national media should feel responsible to seriously try to help address issues and stay away from adopting approaches that will provoke crises and disappoint the public,' Salehi said.

He said that in their efforts to address issues, the media should try to turn threats into opportunities and lead the public opinion towards positive trends.

It is not only missiles that could target our national security, the Iranian culture minister warned.

'As I have said repeatedly, the biggest threats come from distrust towards our media outlets and when they lose their audience,' Salehi said.

He went on to emphasize strengthening the country's public diplomacy to ward off threats.

'We are living in a world and a region overwhelmed with dangers and threats; we should solidify our public diplomacy to reduce these threats and dangers,' he added.

Zia Hashemi has been appointed by the Iranian minister of culture and Islamic guidance as the new managing-director of the Islamic Republic News Agency (IRNA), replacing Mohammad Khodadai who held the post for five yers [sic].