TEHRAN – Iran’s Ministry of Culture and Islamic Guidance has established a plaque of honor, which is awarded to “the Islamic Revolution model journalists”.

In memory of Reza Moqaddasi, former managing director of the Tehran Times, the plaque has been named after “Qalam-e Moqaddas” (Sacred Pen).

The plaque was unveiled during a special ceremony at Tehran’s Rudaki Hall last Wednesday, just one day before the death anniversary of Moqaddasi, who was posthumously awarded the first edition of it for his contributions to the Islamic Revolution.

His widow and son received the plaque from the Minister of Culture and Islamic Guidance, Mohammad-Mehdi Esmaeili.    

“Reza Moqaddasi was an exemplary journalist of the Islamic Revolution who gave a brilliant performance during his short life,” Esmaeili said.

“He was an Islamic Revolution model journalist; he can be a symbol of revolutionary journalism,” he added.

He also said, “During the Qajar period, [prince] Abbas Mirza sent three persons to the West to study modern sciences; one the person was Mirza Saleh Shirazi who established the daily ‘Kaghaz-e Akhbar’ after his return to the country; we made much progress in journalism during the Qajar period.”

“This profession also developed in post-revolution Iran and many journalists were trained and still working in different media,” he noted.

The ceremony honored photojournalist Mahmud Abdolhosseini who received this year’s Qalam-e Moqaddas. He is most famous for his collection of photos of Imam Khomeini, the founder of the Islamic Republic.

Born in 1967, Moqaddasi began his career in journalism by working for school newspapers. He then was employed as an editor in the social and political desks of Jam-e Jam, a daily working under the patronage of the Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting (IRIB).

He was also the deputy managing director of Hamshahri, the newspaper of the Tehran Municipality.

Moqaddasi also served as managing director of the Mehr News Agency and Tehran Times. He died from cancer on February 2, 2018.

Photo: Photojournalist Mahmud Abdolhosseini (R) receives the Qalam-e Moqaddas from Culture Minister Mohammad-Mehdi Esmaeili at Tehran’s Rudaki Hall on February 1, 2023. (ISNA/Hadi Zand)
 
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