Why Iranian celebrities took a break from politics

Celebrities have traditionally played an important role in Iran’s political sphere, calling on their supporters to vote for their favored candidates. But things are changing. In the latest presidential elections on June 18, celebrities went quiet. This influential group of athletes, actors, singers and other artists began to play a central role in politics in the controversial 2009 elections, when many artists and social groups came out in support of candidate Mir Hossein Mousavi to prevent Mahmoud Ahmadinejad from being reelected. They also played an active role during the post-election protests, urging people to continue protesting against the government, sparking anger among the Iranian security apparatus. Some pro-government political groups have tried to attract artists’ support ever since. Although the 2009 elections were disappointing for the celebrities who campaigned against Ahmadinejad, they did not pull back from the political public sphere. Four years later in the 2013 presidential vote, the artists, who were not at all happy with increasing government censorship and security crackdowns during Ahmadinejad’s second term, came out in support of moderate Hassan Rouhani. “The security apparatus was outraged by the influence of celebrities in the Iranian political and social process,” an Iranian director who asked not to be named told Al-Monitor. “For this reason, from the…
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