Iran's liberal press tiptoes between 'red lines'

TEHRAN, June 12 (Reuters) Mohammad Quchani has worked for 11 newspapers that were closed by the Iranian authorities and most never reopened. So he won't predict how long the daily which he launched last month as editor will survive.

''It depends on political issues and it also depends on how the newspaper proceeds,'' the 30-year-old said in the central Tehran offices of Ham Mihan (Compatriot).

For newspapers like Ham Mihan which back the ideas of Iran's liberal-leaning reformist camp, avoiding closure demands a careful balancing act -- pushing the boundaries of criticism but staying within sometimes obscure political ''red lines''.

The situation is more nuanced than the image of Iran portrayed by critics in the west, of a system that represses all critical opinion. There are Iranian commentators who even see signs of a fragile revival for reformist publications.

But journalists say it is still easy to fall foul of the authorities -- particularly since President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad came to power in 2005 with speeches against the West and those he sees challenging the values of the 1979 Islamic revolution.

Sharq, the reformist daily Quchani previously worked for, was closed in September for a range of offences, which included defying demands that it replace its managing director, who was accused of blasphemy and insulting officials.

At the time, some journalists saw the move as part of the government's efforts to silence any opposition -- a charge officials dismiss, saying the government welcomes criticism.

Initially, many of the Sharq journalists launched a new title -- following a pattern that emerged in the late 1990s when dozens of reformist newspapers were shut, only to be opened under a different guise, some publishing for just days.

The authorities quickly saw the new paper as a thinly veiled version of Sharq and shut it. But Sharq fought its closure in court and won. In May it republished.

NO-GO AREAS ''We will do whatever we can not to have any legal problems.

We will respect those 'red lines' that we can understand, not to pass beyond them,'' said Managing Director Mahdi Rahmanian, 40, whose removal had originally been demanded by the authorities.

Iran's nuclear row with the West is a subject which requires ''sensitive and careful'' coverage, he said. Judiciary news ''we are a bit careful about''. He is wary about military stories. And other ministries ''complain this is our red line''.

''But our problem is sometimes we don't know where are the prohibited areas,'' he added.

Other journalists say there is a level playing field for all newspapers. Amir Mohebian, political editor of the conservative Resalat, says that broadly ''we have freedom to publish our ideas, both ... reformist and conservative.'' MORE REUTERS NY RK0858