What would be a good source to find information about Iran?

Wikipedia

Visit your local library and speak to one of their reference librarians. They will direct you right to the information you are looking for.

There are a lot of Iranian blogs: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blogging_in_Iran#Directories

Could give you some insights into the people and culture; might not fit the “factual” requirement.

BBC and Al Jezeera

The CIA World Factbook article on Iran may be helpful.

The OP requested “unbiased”.

Would this be the same CIA which insisted that there were WMDs in Iraq and backing up Bush/Cheney in their determination to get Saddam thus invading the wrong country in the aftermath of 9/11 and creating a new haven and magnet for terrorists where there weren’t any before because Saddam hated the SOBs ? THAT CIA ? ?

Actually, @Buttonstc, I was going to recommend the same source. It might help to understand that the research department of the CIA is there to provide useful information to US businesses. Business doesn’t want to find itself screwed because the CIA is playing some game. The Worldfactbook is actually one of the go to sources for information about a country when you are beginning to think about going there.

Of course, there are histories to read and guide books, and business analyses and a gazillion other things. The problem there is the gazillion. You want some concise, useful information about a country that actually is just the facts, ma’am, you could do worse than use the Factbook.

I see your point. But my reaction was prompted by the OP’s specific request for unbiased and the CIA doesn’t immediately spring to mind in conjunction with that word :)

But obviously they do try to select the cream of the crop and have a lot of resources so I wouldn’t discount their info out of hand. But I would always have the need to take it with a grain of salt in the back of my skeptical mind and realize that their info is filtered through an American mindset.

(and the BBC is filtered through a more European mindset)

I think many points of view are valuable and somewhere in the middle lies the reality of the situation.

Don’t get me wrong. I’m US born, proud to be, and wouldn’t want to ever leave. But I’m just not under the illusion that our govt. is an infallible bastion of truth. So color me skeptical about ANY govt. agency :)

@Buttonstc . Hahahaa BBC as an unbiased source?
Come now that was a joke wasn’t it?

@raven860 if you want a parrallel of BBC check out http://rt.com/news/ The truth is to be found somewhere in-between both of these government controlled mediums.

@Buttonstc Totally agree about skepticism, but that also means being skeptical about my own prejudices. Normally, I’d say the CIA is going to be pretty biased or give out as much misinformation as information. And while I do think the Factbook may have some deliberately left out things, I also have personal experience with it and have found it to be very useful.

As always, there is no source that is unbiased. You need to read several sources and see what you think. Would you buy a car without getting many opinions about the reliability and other features a of a car? I wouldn’t do that without looking at many different sources of information about the car, even if I did look at consumer reports.

@wundy

Yup. Exactly.

@booga

Did you skip over the part where I wrote that “BBC is filtered through a European mindset” ?