Talk:Mohammad Reza Pahlavi

Citations

Nothing seems to be cited for the entire 4th and 5th paragraphs. There is a 2 page citation for the 6th paragraph. An example: "The Shah initiated major investments in infrastructure, subsidies and land grants for peasant populations, profit sharing for industrial workers, construction of nuclear facilities, the nationalization of Iran’s natural resources, and literacy programs which were considered some of the most effective in the world."

Who considered them the most effective in the world? What investments were actually made? What natural resources were nationalized? What profit sharing and land grants were made available?

"Manufacturing of cars, appliances, and other goods in Iran increased substantially leading to the creation of a new industrialist class that was considered insulated from threats of foreign competition."

Who considered the industrialist class to be insulated from competition? Any source on car manufacturing happening in Iran at all? — Preceding unsigned comment added by 2600:6C54:7900:D4D:E9AC:2A0:2DA4:3096 (talk) 15:16, 13 January 2022 (UTC)

Bias

Sections of this article follow a very particular political viewpoint, especially those on the Shah’s economic programs, diplomatic relationship with the US, and perception by students studying in the West. These need to be broadened to include opposing viewpoints and more sources. The lines on the students studying in the West also conflate liberalism with far-left politics and label both liberalism and far-leftism as “Western,” which does not make sense, as these two spectra of politics are quite different from each other and both have a long & involved history in political struggles around the world. A Wikipedia article is not the appropriate venue for someone to air their particular political views.

- just someone who’s been reading the article — Preceding unsigned comment added by 2601:643:8980:28E0:410D:EF03:639D:A8F4 (talk) 16:05, 23 October 2022 (UTC)

I concur with the above comment. The introduction in particular is severely imbalanced, and reads like a hagiography of the Shah. The introduction touts a number of statistics and makes several sweeping claims regarding the effectiveness of the Shah's political leadership -- premised largely on his economic and social development policies. While there is certainly a factual basis for these successes, only at the very end does the introduction discuss some aspects of the Shah's extralegal abuses of power -- and even then it is obliquely referred to through "disputed" statistics on the number of Iranian citizens who were killed during the Shah's reign and as part of his security crackdown at the height of the Iranian Revolution. There is no mention of the many credible reports of gross human rights abuses, suspensions of fundamental freedoms, mass surveillance of citizens who opposed his regime, and collusion with Western powers to consolidate his authoritarian control. In addition, the introduction makes the political antecedents that led to his imposition seem as if they arose through a primarily endogenous set of factors within the Iranian Army and internal political factions opposed to the Shah. Relatedly, the introduction erroneously states that the Army coup was merely "supported" by the United States and the United Kingdom. This is easily disproven by reviewing basic reporting in the public domain. It is undisputed that the CIA -- with significant support from the United Kingdom -- acted as the primary agent in overthrowing Mossadegh and installing the Shah. This is a crucial bit of history to get right, because it sowed the seeds for the Shah's eventual exile less than three decades later.

I strongly suspect that this article has been heavily edited by those who are affiliated with pro-Shah groups or are highly sympathetic to the Pahlevi Dynasty. There are major risks here that the Wikipedia editors need to consider, notably because the current state of the article coincides with social and political upheaval in Iran not seen since the Revolution. A number of pro-Shah groups and individuals maintain a strong presence on social media, and are seeking to mold a political narrative that downplays or outright omits significant criticisms of the Shah's rule, particularly with respect to human rights abuses. It's especially dangerous because some of these groups also advocate for regime change in Iran, up to and including the overthrow of the current Iranian Government by military force that is supported by foreign powers. — Preceding unsigned comment added by Milkbaba (talk • contribs) 00:29, 8 March 2023 (UTC)