Radio Zamaneh

Radio Zamaneh (Persian: رادیو زمانه) is an Amsterdam-based Persian language exile news platform and former radio broadcaster with a leftist approach. "Zamaneh" is the Persian literary term for "time".

Radio Zamaneh is an independent Persian-language exile media and former radio broadcaster that was founded in 2005, after the parliament of The Netherlands passed a resolution calling for support to free Iranian media. Radio Zamaneh is the recipient of various Human Rights and Press Freedom grants, with the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the European Union being amongst the major contributors. The broadcaster's content is provided by Radio Zamaneh's Persian-speaking, almost all Iranian editorial staff and contributors. Radio Zamaneh is an independent broadcasting organization, registered as a non-profit organization in the Netherlands, with its headquarters and studio in Amsterdam.

Radio Zamaneh, criticized by some as a leftist outlet with anti-Western biases, frequently criticizes NATO, the United States, and Israel. It has also been seen as pro-Russian by some. Its founder, Farah Karimi, is a member of the Dutch Parliament and a former member of the MEK, and the last editor-in-chief until 2023, Mohammad Reza Nikfar, is a former member of the OIPFG. Since October 2023, Iman Ganji has been the editor-in-chief of Radio Zamaneh. Most of his writings criticize the policies of Western countries and especially Israel as a racist, colonialist, genocidal and apartheid country.

The aim of Radio Zamaneh, according to its administrators, is "to produce and broadcast informative programs of high journalistic quality, independent from any governmental, political, or social forces inside or outside of Iran".

In its press release, Radio Zamaneh announced that "[it] intends to increase and intensify working relations with online bloggers. The Iranian blog sphere is representing one of the largest web communities in the world. They are considered the preserve of young urban Iranians both inside and outside the country. Their voices are not heard by the mainstream media, neither in Iran itself nor in West-based Iranian media. Radio Zamaneh will serve as a platform for Iranian bloggers and reflect their grassroots opinions and views."

In 2003, the Dutch parliament planned to establish a Persian-language television station in the Netherlands, but after negative reactions from the Iranian government, the project was halted. Proposals were put forward for promoting independent journalism in Iran and eventually the budget was divided between a number of projects, with Radio Zamaneh and Shahrzad News receiving the bulk of the funding.

In 2006, after three years of negotiations,^{[citation needed]} the Radio Zamaneh board selected London-based Persian journalist and radio producer Mehdi Jami as the director of Radio Zamaneh. Jami moved to Amsterdam, where he held a workshop to initiate Radio Zamaneh's activities inviting more than 30 Iranian writers, journalists and bloggers from San Francisco, Washington D.C., Toronto, London, Paris, Berlin, Cologne, Prague and Tehran. Shahrokh Golestan, Abbas Maroufi, Mohammad-Reza Nikfar, Jamshid Barzegar, Nikahang Kowsar and Behzad Bolour were among them. After a 5-day workshop, Radio Zamaneh released a statement calling itself the "Voice of Persian Bloggers"^{[citation needed]}.

Radio Zamaneh broadcasts in Persian via satellite and the internet. The programs contain general news and bulletins, philosophical, social and cultural topics and issues, with special attention for free thought, critical thinking, arts and culture, women's rights, LGBT and minorities. Radio Zamaneh is an alternative voice in the foreign-based Iranian media-landscape, focusing on taboo and using humor and satire as a frequent tool.