NOURNEWS: Held after a few years' hiatus, The Iranian Press Exhibition kicked off on Feb. 18 and wrapped up on Feb. 21. The exhibition, organized under the title "Iran Media Expo 2024" this year, is a familiar name for the press and some groups of people. It has been successful in gaining a superior status among other domestic cultural events, despite all the ups and downs. This status was gained from its first year of holding in 1994 along with the Book Exhibition. Some even didn't speculate that the press exhibition could find an independent identity at the time. As the media was facing an audience crisis, those speculations were getting stronger as well. However, the press exhibition became an independent event 13 years after its first holding, and since then, it has been held annually among other cultural nationwide events.
The inception, pause, and resumption of a cultural event
The press expo was held consistently until 2018, after which the exhibition was halted due to various reasons, with the primary factor being its high cost. Iran’s Ministry of Culture and Islamic Guidance estimated the costs of the press exhibition at about 3,501,900,000 tomans in 2018. The following year, which marked the exhibition’s 22nd year, the cost rose to 3,148,800,000 tomans. In its 21st round, the exhibition cost approximately 2,786,000 tomans, and a year earlier, it was around 2,394,600,000 tomans. The last officially announced cost was for the 19th round of the event, totaling 5,100,000,000 tomans, making it the most expensive round of the press exhibition ever held. (each dollar is about 55000 tomans).
The high costs posed fundamental questions: "Is the high cost of an exhibition, which is primarily aimed at connecting the press and the people, justifiable?" Furthermore, considering that exhibitions often have business objectives, such as increasing product sales, establishing brands, and making direct customer contacts, the question arises: "How profitable is it to present cultural goods in an era dominated by social media, where people are less interested in newspapers and mainstream media outlets?"
These justifications, combined, led to the closure of the press exhibition. Consequently, the exhibition was not held after 1999. One year later, the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic added another reason, but even after the end of the pandemic, there was no decisive action taken regarding holding the exhibition.
However, this year, after a 6-year hiatus, the 24th press exhibition of Iranian media was warmly welcomed by people, the press, and officials at various levels. In an era where media, particularly the printing press, is grappling with an audience crisis, the significance of this year's exhibition demonstrates that the notion of people's disengagement with the media is not necessarily accurate.
More than 600 news units, news agencies, newspapers, and multimedia outlets were present at the event, experiencing crowded days throughout. This is noteworthy considering that only 200 media outlets participated in the first round of the media exhibition about 30 years ago.
The media expo serves as a platform for interaction between the public and the press, where journalists gather to exchange views. Additionally, state officials and authorities show great eagerness to visit the expo.
Is this type of press expo common worldwide?
By examining media expos in other countries, one could see that the style of press expos held in Iran is not widely favored elsewhere in the world. What is more common internationally are photojournalism exhibitions. As mentioned earlier, expos are organized with specific goals in mind, with profitability often being a top priority. The use of printing presses for such events is becoming less justifiable due to the increasing digitization of news sources. Consequently, while newspapers may be falling behind other news outlets in this respect, digital media platforms hold a special position in organizing these events and are widely popular worldwide.
The BANFF International Festival is one of the oldest expo events dedicated to digital and visual media. Held in Canada, this exhibition attracts thousands of visitors each year from over 40 countries.
Similarly, the Media Global Festival is another prominent expo focused on digital media. Additionally, the World Media Festival has been an important media event held annually in Homburg since 2000.
Media and press organizations often participate in expos to demonstrate their continued vitality and dynamism. However, their success depends on maintaining the trust of their smart audiences. The significant number of attendees at this year's exhibition indicates that Iranians remain engaged with media, suggesting that the roots of the "audience crisis" in the country's media market may lie elsewhere.
Iran's media system boasts a potential audience of millions. By identifying their needs and catering to them effectively, media outlets can cultivate an active and engaged viewership.
NOURNEWS