ABSTRACT
The leading role Tehran’s infl uential daily Kayhan and its English edition Kayhan International played in mainstreaming opposition to the nuclear program and galvanizing public opposition to it can hardly be overstated. One of the opening salvos came on February 6, 1978 in a Kayhan International article entitled “Energy in Iran and the Case for Nuclear Power,” penned by Bijan Mossavar-Rahmani, a vocal fossil fuel advocate known for his rugged criticisms of the AEOI and nuclear energy at large. The piece was published at a time when the Shah’s budgetary and decision-making carte blanche to the AEOI under Etemad was a constant source of consternation within the government and fueled turf wars between the AEOI and other government agencies, especially the Ministries of Oil and Energy, were rife.
