The London-based journalists of the BBC Persian Service live in continual jeopardy, much as they would if reporting from a conflict zone or from the bloody scenes of protest in Iran, where thousands have died in recent days.

They fear being kidnapped or attacked on their doorsteps by shadowy agents who stalk their commute to Broadcasting House. Some have been sent threats, promising murder or rape. And many spend each working day wondering if their coverage of events in Iran’s Islamic Republic will lead to parents in Iran being hauled in for interrogation and their family assets seized.

Yet the work that they are doing can shape the destiny of the BBC as the organisation struggles to define its role in a rapidly changing media landscape, while searching for a new leader and negotiating for its future funding model.

BBC Persian is having an extraordinary impact. As mass protests appeared to bring the Iranian regime close to the point of collapse this month, the Persian-language service reached 33.4 million followers across its digital platforms, including 28.2 million in Iran, which is 40 per cent of the adult population. On Instagram, BBC Persian has a following of 23.6 million – bigger than CNN’s English-language account.

For ten days, since the regime ordered an internet blackout on 8 January, Iranians have been denied access to social media. But BBC Persian also operates a satellite television channel seen by 12.5 million, despite a new crackdown on satellite dish ownership by Iran’s authorities.

It is this determined........

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