Iranian PR in 1979

[Boojatta]

Were Americans in America who saw on TV American embassy officials being held hostage expected to think as follows? "Their diplomatic immunity is not being respected and they are being mistreated. Therefore I should assume that they must have done something bad enough to make them deserve it."

If the answer is "yes", then why wouldn't Americans also be expected to think this? "I am told that the human rights of ordinary Iranians were not respected by the Shah. I am told that ordinary Iranians were tortured. Therefore I should assume that those ordinary Iranians must have done something bad enough to make them deserve that treatment."

[RoyGBiv]

1. Ummm ... no?

I don't think anyone truly expected "Americans in America" to think along those lines. Americans were expected to think, and generally did think, that Americans were being held hostage for no good reason. The Iranian government, on the other hand, seemed to expect Americans to think "this is what happens to you when you work against us," a terrorist message actually, in an attempt to convince Amerians to leave them alone.