Purpose: This study aims to conduct a futures study on national policy-making for new media, grounded in expert perspectives. Adopting a mixed-methods approach, the research investigates the current state of new media policy-making in Iran.
Methodology: Data were collected through a two-stage questionnaire, semi-structured interviews with domain experts, and deliberative focus groups. The qualitative data were analyzed using thematic analysis, while the quantitative data were processed through statistical methods. The research population comprised experts in media policy, communications, and cyberspace, selected via purposive sampling. Finally, the findings were synthesized to provide a comprehensive and forward-looking vision of the new media policy-making system.
Findings: The results reveal that new media policy-making in Iran faces significant structural, institutional, and approach-based challenges that hinder the formation of a coherent, future-oriented, and development-driven framework. Expert insights indicate that the prevailing policy approach is primarily reactive and control-oriented, with insufficient focus on innovation, capacity building, and the analysis of emerging technological trends and media consumption patterns. This is largely attributed to institutional fragmentation, a lack of inter-sectoral coordination, overlapping mandates, and the absence of evidence-based policy frameworks. Furthermore, excessive emphasis on regulation and monitoring has led to functional redundancy among key entities—such as the Ministry of Culture and Islamic Guidance, SATRA, and the Supreme Council of Cyberspace—complicating decision-making processes and undermining institutional efficiency. Conversely, critical areas such as content market development, support for cultural entrepreneurship, media literacy, data governance, and media futures studies have been largely neglected, leading to weakened developmental functions and reduced competitiveness in the new media sector.
Conclusion: The findings underscore an urgent need for a paradigm shift in media governance toward a model based on data-driven governance, adaptive regulation, multi-stakeholder participation, and institutional transparency. A pivotal requirement identified by experts is the recalibration of the roles of policy-making bodies, the clear delineation of functions, and the establishment of coordination mechanisms to resolve institutional conflicts.