There are also dozens of Persian-language channels based outside Iran, many run by expatriates.

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In September, when Rita visited Radio Ran, a Persian-language Internet radio station based in a Tel Aviv suburb, the studio was flooded with calls from Iranians around the world.

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Even after the Arab conquest, Persian remained the language of local rulers, as Iranian administrators, mullahs and traders settled in the cities of Transoxania (which covered much of today's Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan and Tajikistan), and is the basis of the language spoken by the Tajiks today.

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His manual on how to blog in the language helped trigger a huge boom in Persian voices on the internet.

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Besides BBC Persian, satellite channels include MBC Persia and Farsi1, which airs local-language versions of entertainment shows like "Malcolm in the Middle" and which is half-owned by News Corp.

WSJ: Censorship Inc.: In Skies Over Iran, a Battle for Control of Satellite TV