found. This vagueness gives judges a lot of room for interpreting what is against the law and should therefore be punished. History Iran has a long history with censorship, especially with reactive measures. This means information in newspapers, on television, or on the internet is withheld from the public, which has been present for ages. These forms of censorship were used for suppression of opposition and for influencing public opinion. Censorship in Iran comes in waves which exist parallel to political crises. In situations of crisis, the state tries to get power back by controlling information streams and thereby denying opposition groups' influence on the public debate. During the crisis that followed the nationalization of the oil industry in the 1950s, censorship was intensified to protect the Shah's reputation. During the 1970s, in the years preceding the revolution, censorship was less present in Iranian society. This created big developments in Iranian literature production. However, in later years, the Islamic Revolution intensified censorship once again. The new Islamic leaders tried to consolidate their power by enforcing new regulations. And lastly, in the crisis after the 2009 elections, communication channels were shut down to prevent major uprisings. Subject matter and agenda Political Censorship in Iran is largely seen as a measure to maintain the stability of the country. Censorship helps prevent unapproved reformists, Counter-Revolutionaries, or religious proponents, peaceful or otherwise, from organizing themselves and spreading their ideals. In 2007, for example, five women were charged with "endangering national security" and sentenced to prison for collecting over a million signatures supporting the abolishment of laws discriminating against women. Some of the topics explicitly banned from discussion in the media by the Supreme National Security Council include Iran's economic troubles, the possibility of new international sanctions targeted at Iran's nuclear program, negotiations with the United States regarding Iraq, social taboos, unrest among Iran's ethnic minorities, and the arrests in 2007 of Haleh Esfandiari, Kian Tajbakhsh and Ali Shakeri. Media Two notable crackdowns on the Iranian press occurred on August 7–11, 1979. This was early in the Islamic Revolution when the Khamenei forces were consolidating control, and dozens of non-Islamist newspapers were banned under a new press law banning "counter-revolutionary policies and acts." Despite a ban on satellite television, dishes are on many Iranian rooftops, and people have access to dozens of Persian-language channels, including the Voice of America, broadcasting a daily dose of politics