'Character assassination' confirmed

It has been written and discussed extensively that the sudden morning roundup of 19 celebrities from their homes and their public declaration as suspects in a "drug operation" was a case of "character assassination."

However, the media also became complicit in the Gendarmerie Command's error. Not only were the 19 celebrities paraded in the news as "drug users" from the very first day, but their privacy was further violated by the announcement that 4 of them were using prescription medication. It was also flawed that the news reports on the test results were largely framed around the fact that 8 celebrities tested positive.

In reality, the actual news was the finding that 11 of them did not use drugs, which confirmed the "character assassination" carried out by the Gendarmerie. The question of how the Gendarmerie could leave people under suspicion for no reason should have been scrutinized.

MINISTER YERLIKAYA FAILED TO TAKE ACTION 

Journalism is a dangerous profession in this country. Attacks come from the streets, as well as from the police, governors, and those in power.

Last week, we were shaken by the beating death of journalist and documentarian Hakan Tosun in the middle of the street in Istanbul. How and why this tragic murder was committed remains a mystery. Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya, who personally announces everything from gang operations to traffic fines with the phrase "the necessary action has been taken," made no statement; he also avoided answering our colleagues' questions regarding this murder. He did not take responsibility for the police's failure to ensure safety on the streets or for their failure to conduct a proper investigation.

Yet, the relatives of the perpetrator were able to threaten Halk TV reporter Umut Taştan, who was investigating the incident. Just recently, news also emerged that our colleagues Şule Aydın and Murat Ağırel had been threatened.

Journalism also faced pressure in Iğdır, where İHA reporter Sebahattin Yum was detained following a complaint by Governor Ercan Turan. The governor's justification was that Yum's report was "misleading to the public." However, the fact that an umbrella was held over Governor Turan while veterans were getting wet in the rain is proven by a photograph.

Moreover, journalist Ercan Tunç, who reported on Yum's detention, was also detained! What kind of legal basis could there possibly be for detaining a journalist who reports on the detention of another journalist? This is a despotic and arbitrary attack on freedom of the press and expression...

This attack in Iğdır shows the difficult conditions under which local journalists work. Local authorities can act as if they are the superiors of journalists. However, Minister Yerlikaya, who is their actual superior, prefers to remain silent on this incident as well...

THE HULUSI AKAR ERROR THAT EXPOSED THE PLAGIARIST 

Journalist Ragıp Soylu wrote on X, "Turkey has officially confirmed that it has purchased 12 second-hand C-130 military cargo planes from the UK. The planes are undergoing modernization." He also attached his old article published on the Middle East Eye website on January 20, 2023, to his post, reminding readers that he had announced the start of negotiations on that date.

Ragıp Soylu shared this on October 16 at 12:49 PM. At 2:43 PM, a news report was published on the Karar website: "Turkey is negotiating a major defense deal with the UK against US obstacles." Interestingly, the data from the old report that Ragıp Soylu attached to his post was quoted verbatim in Karar. It even mentioned that "National Defense Minister Hulusi Akar met with UK Defense Secretary Ben Wallace in London last Sunday!" However, Hulusi Akar is no longer the Minister of National Defense, nor is Ben Wallace.

It is sad, but the reporter who wrote the story for Karar had copied the text from two years ago verbatim, thinking it was new, without even paying attention to the names of the ministers or the date mentioned by Ragıp Soylu! The editors at Karar also failed to notice the errors and published the story without correcting it! It had not been corrected while I was preparing this article, and it had been sitting there like that for three days.

The habit of plagiarism is bad, but careless journalism is even worse...

THE EASY WAY TO ENSURE A 'LANGUAGE OF PEACE' 

If what Pervin Buldan, a member of the DEM Party's Imrali delegation, meant was not interference in the media, then it is not a case of being "misunderstood," but rather of "explaining it wrongly." Because while speaking to Medya Haber, she emphasized that "the government needs to find ways and methods to convince those who oppose the process," and in summary, she says the following:

"Mr. Ocalan focused on an issue he was uncomfortable with in this latest meeting as well: the language of the media. He stated that many channels and commentators still maintain the hostile language of the past. It is not a problem for us to solve when some commentators and reporters in the media use expressions against the process. This is the government's issue. Because today, the media is in the hands of the government, in the hands of the AKP, and the judiciary is also in the hands of the AKP. We are talking about a government that dominates every area of life."

Although Buldan speaks of "convincing" and "winning over" those who oppose it before these sentences, this is an indicator of intent. However, adding "It is the government's duty to eliminate such issues" after saying "The media is in the hands of the AKP, and so is the judiciary" is problematic. It is natural for these words to evoke the idea of the AKP censoring the media "in its hands" or interfering with the opposition media.

Following the reaction from journalists, Buldan's statement that "If the government takes more constructive and positive steps, people's language will also change. That is what I meant. I do not mean interference in any other way" is a positive step, but it is insufficient because she does not acknowledge her own mistake.

Furthermore, "peace journalism" is a general problem for the media. I have also previously criticized our colleagues who stray from the "peace journalism" line and do not use the "language of peace" many times.

Yes, there are those in the opposition media who are openly against the process. However, the attitude of the pro-government media, which appears to support the process, is also full of shortcomings and errors, as is the Kurdish media. The pro-government media does not delve into what the problem is, what needs to be solved, or the details of what is discussed in the commission at the Grand National Assembly of Turkey; it is content with roughly reporting the traffic. Similarly, the Kurdish media moves away from the content of the problem and broadcasts with slogans and without developing empathy. Because it is quite difficult to speak of independent broadcasting on either side...

Moreover, there is not much progress in the visible part of the process, and it is unknown what is happening behind the scenes. Neither the AKP nor the DEM side stands before journalists to answer questions or provide detailed explanations. Yet, if they acted transparently instead of complaining as the executors of the process, it could have been easier to ensure the "language of peace."

AN OPPORTUNITY TO RENEW THE PRESS ADVERTISING AGENCY 

Let it not be overlooked: the Constitutional Court's decision to annul the Press Advertising Agency's (BİK) authority to cut official announcements and advertisements has two significant consequences.

First, the Constitutional Court has officially registered the arbitrariness of the penalties BİK has imposed to date by cutting announcements and advertisements to opposition media (especially local media).

In its annulment decision, the Constitutional Court stated, 'It is not sufficient for a legal regulation aimed at limiting freedom of expression and the press to exist in form; legal rules must be specific, accessible, and predictable in a way that does not allow for arbitrariness.' The Court drew attention to the fact that the rules and framework of the sanctions BİK imposes on newspapers, magazines, and news sites on the grounds that they do not comply with Press Ethics Principles and regulations are ambiguous, thereby damaging the principle of 'legal certainty' and the 'sense of trust'.

Second, this annulment decision by the Constitutional Court makes it mandatory for BİK, which has lost its legal basis, to be completely restructured rather than settling for a single-article amendment.

The Constitutional Court's annulment of clause 'a' of Article 49 of the Law on the Establishment of the Press Advertising Agency, titled 'Sanctions,' which granted the Board of Directors the authority to impose penalties for a period not exceeding two months, has left the BİK administration without authority.

The Constitutional Court reached its annulment decision upon the application of the Bakırköy 9th Civil Court of First Instance, where the objection of the Journalists' Association to the five-day official announcement cut penalty imposed on its '24 Saat' newspaper was being heard. Gökhan Tekşen, the lawyer for the Association who has followed this case from the beginning, said, 'The Constitutional Court pointed out that BİK's authority to impose sanctions is problematic in terms of legal certainty, legality, and legal security. The principle of 'let journalists define journalism,' which professional organizations have persistently emphasized, has gained a constitutional basis and stability.'

This is a great opportunity. Journalism professional organizations must take action to ensure that BİK is restructured in a fair, libertarian, transparent, and independent manner, free from political influence. Let us not leave the transformation of BİK solely to Abdülkadir Çay, who was transferred from the SETA General Directorate to the BİK General Directorate the other day, and to the political power.

DISRESPECT FOR LABOR IN ALTERNATIVE MEDIA 

"Gündem Fethiye" is a local newspaper that publishes with the motto of "rights-based and independent local journalism." News Editor Hülya Çetinkaya is troubled by the fact that the news they produce is quoted without attribution. In the message she sent me, Çetinkaya summarized her views as follows:

"While trying to practice rights-based journalism at the local level, we unfortunately sometimes have to struggle with places we never expected. Our news, photos, and videos are used without citing the source, and sometimes the logos on them are intentionally blurred. Previously, we would contact the institutions every time this happened and request a correction. We received very positive responses from some institutions and very poor ones from others.

When institutions that hijack our news see a small local newspaper in front of them, let alone taking us seriously, they don't even allow us to speak with an authorized person. The absurd part of this, in my opinion, is that we don't even demand royalties from national institutions in exchange for news. We even encourage them to use our news and only ask that they cite the source. In this way, we want to contribute to the reliable and comprehensive delivery of accurate information from the local to the national level. 

Finally, after our story '5 bullets for those who bring a wild boar tail in Muğla' was stolen without attribution, I could no longer bear it and wanted to write to you."

What is sad is that the organizations Çetinkaya complains about are opposition or alternative media outlets. This is truly unacceptable. You cannot claim to be a rights advocate and practice journalism in accordance with universal standards while simultaneously stealing news from local media.

In a single sentence:

• Akşam, which reported that academic Emrah Gülsunar was arrested for conducting a "survey on receiving help from abroad for a coup," failed to provide the information that the survey was about Venezuela.

• In the story "He killed his spitting patient with an injection" by Sabah and CNN Türk, the "allegation" was presented as if it had been verified without being properly investigated.

• In Yeni Şafak's report titled "They made the municipality pay the advisor's compensation," the name of the advisor who filed a lawsuit against the CHP was coded as C. A., despite there being no ethical or security-related reason to do so.

• The photos of "relocated olive trees" published in an interview in Hürriyet titled "Here are the relocated trees of Yeniköy" were actually old photos that had been published in many outlets 10 days earlier.

• In its report "Tender operation at BKM," Türkiye newspaper coded the name of the arrested former Deputy Governor of the Central Bank, Emrah Şener—even though his name had been written openly in all other media outlets—and did not mention his position.

• Pro-government media outlets conducted a one-sided campaign in favor of President Ersin Tatar, the joint candidate of right-wing parties, ahead of the elections in Cyprus.

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