(The AP reporting about the TV show is apparently a whitewash. See updated post)

MOST POPULAR TV SHOW IN IRAN: SUFFERING OF JEWS DURING THE HOLOCAUST.

Every Monday night at 10 o'clock, Iranians by the millions tune into Channel One to watch the most expensive show ever aired on the Islamic republic's state-owned television. Its elaborate 1940s costumes and European locations are a far cry from the typical Iranian TV fare of scarf-clad women and gray-suited men.

But the most surprising thing about the wildly popular show is that it is a heart-wrenching tale of European Jews during World War II.

The hour-long drama, "Zero Degree Turn," centers on a love story between an Iranian-Palestinian Muslim man and a French Jewish woman. Over the course of the 22 episodes, the hero saves his love from Nazi detention camps, and Iranian diplomats in France forge passports for the woman and her family to sneak on to airplanes carrying Iranian Jews to their homeland.

What appears to be a contradiction, is an Iranian distinction between Jews in general and "the minority of Zionists". Distinction or no, the show is very popular among the 25,000 Jews of Iran--the largest population of Jews in the Middle East outside of Israel.

Of course, the Iranian government doesn't pass up the opportunity to put it's own spin on the history of the time:

The show also pushes Iran's political line regarding the legitimacy of Israel: The Jewish state was conceived in modern times by Western powers rather than as part of a centuries-old desire of Jews for a return to their ancestral homeland. In one scene, a rabbi declares it a bad idea for Jews to resettle in Arab lands. In another, the French Jewish protagonist refuses a marriage offer by a cousin, who is advocating the creation of Israel.

For all the propaganda, the show is popular with Iranians as well as Jews. Who knows--some real good may come out of this.

Technorati Tag: Iran and Holocaust and Zero Degree Turn.