TEHRAN – Time magazine chose Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, the founder of the Islamic Revolution, as its Man of the Year for 1979. The magazine’s editors explained at the time that they sought to recognize the individual who "had done the most to change the news, for better or for worse."

Without a doubt, the Islamic Revolution in Iran in 1979 was one of the most impactful events of the latter half of the 20th century. Both before and after the revolution’s victory in February of that year, the world's most prominent newspapers and magazines extensively covered the unfolding events, focusing particularly on its leader, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, more widely known as Imam Khomeini.

In late December 1979, Time magazine's correspondents in Iran, L. Bruce van Voorst and Roland Flamini, traveled to the holy city of Qom to interview the revolution's leader on December 29th. This was just a day before the American weekly announced him as Man of the Year. The interview focused on topics such as the crimes of the Shah’s regime, the nature of the Islamic Revolution, international developments, the collapse of the bipolar world order, and the fate of the American detainees who had been held in Iran since the U.S. Embassy takeover on November 4th.

Time ’s description of Imam Khomeini

Time described Imam Khomeini as "an old man of 79" who lived in “his modest home in the holy city of Qom,” a leader who had shaken the world.

“One thing is certain: the world will not again look quite the way it did before Feb. 1, 1979, the day on which [Imam] Khomeini flew back to a tumultuous welcome in Tehran after 15 years in exile,” the magazine wrote.

He was the second Iranian political figure to be named Man of the Year by Time, following democratically elected Prime Minister Mohammad Mossadegh, who was ousted in a US-led coup in 1953.

Imam Khomeini challenged the established world order and the two superpowers with his unwavering positions. Time’s editors likely portrayed a sullen-looking Imam Khomeini due to their disapproval of the American detainees being held in Tehran. The revolutionary leader had thrown his support behind the students who had stormed the U.S. Embassy, which they dubbed the “Den of Espionage.”

In the interview, when asked about the American detainees’ release, Imam Khomeini replied, “We want to prove to the world that superpowers can be defeated by the power of faith. We will stand against America with all our might. We fear no power.”

“The revolution that he led to triumph threatens to upset the world balance of power more than any other political event," the Time article concluded.

Imam Khomeini-led revolution's impact on the non-Muslim world

"It wasn't just its Islamic aspect. Non-Muslim nations, too, were likely to be drawn to the spectacle of a rebellion aimed at expelling all foreign influence," the article stated.

The American magazine further cautioned about the Iranian leader's inspiring ideas, noting that their influence would spread from the Indian subcontinent to Turkey and southward through the Arabian Peninsula to the Horn of Africa. "Most significantly," it warned, "the revolution that transformed Iran into an Islamic republic, with the Quran as its supreme law, was undermining the stability of the Middle East. This region supplies more than half of the Western world's imported oil and sits at the strategic crossroads of superpower competition."

Time praised Imam Khomeini for leading the revolution that overthrew the Shah regime, explaining that "as America's surrogate policeman of the Persian Gulf, the U.S. had given the Shah its full support. President Richard Nixon and Secretary of State Henry Kissinger allowed him to purchase all the modern weapons he desired.”

Time went on to acknowledge that "Even after the revolution had begun, U.S. officials remained convinced that 'there is no alternative to the Shah.'"

Regarding Imam Khomeini’s undeniable influence within Iran, the weekly wrote, "When he called for strikes, his followers shut down banks, the postal service, factories, food stores, and most importantly, the oil wells, bringing the country close to paralysis."

The article also attributed the rise of the Islamic movement led by Imam Khomeini to Western colonialism. "Muslims have bitter memories of over a century of Western colonialism, which kept most Islamic countries in subjugation until a generation ago. They tend to see U.S. support for Israel as a continuation of this imperialist tradition."

Time further stated in the lengthy article that the late founder of the Islamic Revolution inspired Muslims in countries like Libya, India, and Bangladesh to stage anti-American demonstrations.

The piece continued, noting that Muslims in Islamabad, the capital of Pakistan, burned the U.S. embassy and killed two U.S. servicemen. "In Saudi Arabia, possessor of the world's largest oil reserves, the vulnerability of the royal family became starkly apparent when a group of 200 to 300 well-armed raiders seized the Sacred Mosque in Mecca, the holiest of all Islamic shrines, which is under the protection of King Khalid.”

Time described the Iranian revolution as the first major international “crisis” that was not an East-West conflict.

The American magazine further cautioned against the appeal of Imam Khomeini’s Islamic Revolution to non-Muslim nations in the East. It argued that the Iranian Revolution called into question the viability of modernization and industrialization theories promoted by the West to avert anti-American uprisings. The Iranians, the article suggested, demonstrated that culture was a significant factor. It urged action to "keep future Third World revolutions from taking an anti-American turn."

“The Iranian revolution has also had a dramatic impact on Western economies. 1979 was the year the world economy moved from an era of recurrent oil surpluses into an age of chronic shortages,” Time’s article also stated. “If there had been no revolution in Iran… 1979 would have been a normal year.”

The article also urged for addressing the Palestine issue, stating, "The extent to which the Palestinian problem has inflamed passions, even among Arabs who consider themselves pro-U.S., is not at all understood by Americans."

Washington must bear in mind that Iran today, under the leadership of the Imam’s successor, Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei, is in a far more powerful position compared to the early years after the Revolution. Therefore, one can say, in Imam's words, "America can't do a damn thing" against Iran.