İmamoğlu’s journalist invitation from Ankara

Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality Mayor and candidate Ekrem İmamoğlu invited a group of journalists from Ankara to Istanbul last week and held a special press conference for them.

The news of the press conference was presented in Sözcü as “İmamoğlu met with CHP reporters from Ankara” and in BirGün as “İmamoğlu met with CHP reporters from Ankara.”

In fact, it should have been described as those who were brought or invited, rather than those who came. The journalists did not go to Istanbul on their own; they were invited, and their travel expenses were covered.

The reason why İmamoğlu invited the reporters covering the CHP to Istanbul is a matter of politics. From a journalistic perspective, the primary issue is “invited journalism.” If it had been decided that it was necessary for journalists in Ankara to follow İmamoğlu’s press conference, the media organizations should have covered these expenses themselves.

Furthermore, with so many reporters and writers already in Istanbul, there should have been a specific journalistic reason for reporters to get up and travel from Ankara. But looking at the published news, there is no such special reason. Journalists in Istanbul could have asked those questions just as well.

If the issue was for İmamoğlu to meet the reporters covering the CHP, that could have been possible at another time when he came to Ankara.

Journalism should not set its course according to the needs of politicians…

NOT A PROGRAM, BUT ŞİMŞEK’S PRESENTATION

Treasury and Finance Minister Mehmet Şimşek has a very limited relationship with the media. Instead of holding press conferences or appearing on screens frequently, he prefers to make statements via social media.

As far as I recall, he appeared on NTV last September. Following the local elections, he was forced to appear on screen twice in one week due to the spread of rumors that new taxes would be imposed, the number of Motor Vehicle Taxes (MTV) would be increased, and foreign exchange rates would begin to climb.

However, I cannot say that he answered questions in the joint broadcast of Bloomberg HT and Habertürk HT. Minister Şimşek explained the topics he had planned in advance. Açıl Sezen fulfilled the function of “facilitating” his job with non-challenging, non-probing, and leading questions.

So much so that he started by asking, “At what stage are you in the rational economic policies you thought of before taking office?” The fact that he directed questions regarding exporters’ expectations for an increase in exchange rates, credit card regulations, and retirement pensions by asking “…is there a message you would like to give?” confirmed that the program was structured for the purpose of the minister delivering his messages. Even pre-prepared charts were displayed on the background screen to support Şimşek’s presentation.

Şimşek was also at ease while answering the questions of Hande Fırat and Zafer Şahin in the program on CNN TÜRK. Journalists who asked questions such as “Give us information, tell us the latest situation,” “What would you like to say so that citizens can be hopeful,” and “What is the strongest pillar of the program?” and who adopted the government’s economic program by saying “The program we are implementing,” made Şimşek’s explanation quite easy. While Şimşek was speaking, pre-prepared charts were brought to the screen in this program as well.

Both of these programs were organized at the minister’s request and appeared to be a presentation aimed at the elections. The problem was that these programs were presented as journalistic activities.

THE ADDRESS “EFENDİM” HAS BEEN APPRECIATED!

Hürriyet’s website ran the headline “Surprise support from MHP leader Devlet Bahçeli for Turgut Altınok’s election campaign,” but why should Bahçeli’s support for Altınok be a surprise? Altınok is already the candidate of the “People’s Alliance” (Cumhur İttifakı). Moreover, he is a former MHP member and of Idealist (Ülkücü) origin.

There were other exaggerated sentences in this Hürriyet report that I find difficult to reconcile with journalism:

“Citizens also showed great interest in Bahçeli and Altınok; some citizens on the road conveyed their greetings by making the wolf sign. The people of Keçiören embraced both names.”

“Bahçeli, upon Altınok’s invitation, went to the municipality and was hosted in the mayoral office. Altınok’s address of ‘Efendim’ (Sir/My Master) to Bahçeli, his stance, and his modest attitude were appreciated.”

It is difficult to understand how the people of Keçiören embraced Bahçeli and Altınok and how that was determined. But what is truly surprising is the decision that “Altınok calling Bahçeli ‘Efendim’ was appreciated.” Whose appreciation did Altınok “gather” and how, and why was saying “Efendim” important? These are words that do not befit a news report. They have completely lost their sense of proportion while trying to praise.

Such meaningless sentences could not have come from the hand of a journalist. This is not the language of journalism. They probably just put a party bulletin on the page as news…

WHEN LOBBYING IS CONFUSED WITH EXPECTATION

The news titled “Spread from government lobbies: Retirees’ holiday bonus is increasing to 10 thousand TL” was published on Kısa Dalga with an “Exclusive news” logo. The spot of the March 3rd report was as follows:

“It is claimed that the government, which announced the bonus to be given to retirees for the holiday as 3 thousand TL, will make a new move following the reactions. According to information reflected from government lobbies, President Erdoğan will announce after tomorrow’s cabinet meeting that the bonus will be increased to 10 thousand TL.”

When the phrases “information reflected from government lobbies” and “Erdoğan will announce tomorrow” were used, the “information” that the bonus would be increased to 10 thousand TL was published on dozens of news sites. Then, claims flew in the air; on some sites, it was even mentioned that the bonus would be 20 thousand liras.

Expectations rose before the cabinet meeting on March 4th. However, the holiday bonus had been set at 3 thousand TL in the omnibus bill passed by the TBMM; Erdoğan had also clearly stated that an increase was not possible. The only positive signal was the words of MHP Chairman Bahçeli: “Necessary improvements will be made generously for our retirees.”

Indeed, Erdoğan announced after the meeting that the bonus would not be increased. As long as there is expectation, lobby news about retiree salaries and bonuses will not end, but it is important not to confuse lobbying with information, and expectation with prediction. When lobby information conveyed with definitive expressions does not materialize, credibility is shaken.

HEADLINES ARE NOT GIVEN, THEY ARE TAKEN

The new trend in television programs with leaders is to ask at some point in the interview, “Is there a headline you will give us?” In the program on HalkTV attended by Şirin Payzın, Kürşad Oğuz, and Barış Pehlivan, this question was also directed to CHP Chairman Özgür Özel. Towards the end of the 2.5-hour program, Barış Pehlivan asked the following:

“Mr. Chairman, there are about 25 days left until the elections. We are looking now, millions of people are watching this broadcast even during the commercial break. Is there something we will hear for the first time that you can tell us? Perhaps concerning CHP voters, perhaps AKP voters, or other party voters. How nice it would be if you gave us a headline to run. Is there such a…”

Özgür Özel laughed when he heard the question. He started by saying “We are expecting triplets” and began to explain that they would emerge from the elections with great success. He did not give the expected headline!

In any case, a politician does not give a headline in an interview; the journalists asking the questions take it. Journalists guide, press, and examine with their questions in such a way that the politician is forced to say words that will become a headline. Therefore, instead of asking “Is there a headline you will give us,” one needs to prepare questions whose answers will be the headline.

WHY IS THE NAME OF THE ABUSE DEFENDANT CODED?

There are two DHA reports side by side on Hürriyet’s third page. In the report “The curtain of mystery has been lifted,” the name of Kenan Alagöz, who is accused of killing interior designer Bartu Can, is written openly, and a photo showing his face is published. In the adjacent report “96 years requested for the perverted instructor in the boys’ dormitory,” the name of the accused instructor is coded as G.R.U., and his face is blurred.

While the name of the arrested suspect is written openly, why are the name and face of the defendant against whom a lawsuit has been filed hidden? Perhaps such a need was felt because the abuse took place in a dormitory of the Süleymancılar sect. In fact, the news does not even mention that it is a sect dormitory.

It is not just Hürriyet; the defendant’s name was coded in abuse reports in countless places, including NTV, Yeni Yaşam, Sözcü, Habertürk, and HalkTv. Aydınlık, BirGün, and Cumhuriyet, which coded it in the printed newspaper, had openly written the name of the defendant accused of abusing 10 children as Gani Rüçhan Uyrum on the internet. In fact, the defendant’s face was also visible in BirGün.

This person, who has already been in custody for three months, has had a lawsuit filed against him; he is no longer a suspect, but a defendant. Therefore, there should be no harm in giving his name and face openly.

In one sentence:

• Yeni Akit managed to find a “suspicion of assassination” in the accident involving BBP Chairman Mustafa Destici’s vehicle, but there was no external intervention in the vehicle that went off the road and hit the barriers.

• In the reports passed by İHA and used in many places, such as “Came from Sweden for aesthetics, her funeral returned” and “Wrong circumcision darkened her life,” the names of the private hospitals where the incidents occurred were hidden.

• The news that AKP’s Mollakendi Mayor Enis Doğan was arrested on charges of “encouraging prostitution, mediating, and providing a place” did not appear in the pro-government media.

• Hürriyet’s report “Images in the Hablemitoğlu case have been submerged” was published one day earlier in 12Punto with the signature of Müyesser Yıldız and a similar headline.

• The last hearing of the case regarding the murder of Necip Hablemitoğlu, where Sabah newspaper News Coordinator Abdurrahman Şimşek was heard as a witness, was not news in Sabah.

• NTV introduced AKP candidates in Diyarbakır and Samsun in the “Towards local elections” section of its news bulletin, but did not interview candidates from other parties in these cities.

• Gazete Pencere, in an article titled “A city waiting to be discovered: Düzce,” introduced the achievements of AKP mayor and candidate Faruk Özlü in addition to Düzce.

• Akşam (Çorum/Bursa/Konya), Aydınlık (Bursa), and Türkgün (Tokat-Erbaa) published full-page news-like promotions of municipalities.

• The report “He introduced himself as an Italian chef for years!” published in Cumhuriyet on March 6th was first written by Mehmet Yalçın last year on T24, and the entire media had quoted it.

• Milliyet turned a study conducted in France on the effect of carbohydrates on the skin into news with the headline “Pastry makes you ugly.”

• Türkiye writer Atilla Yayla wrote that it is wrong to write “exorbitant prices” or “waging war on exorbitant prices” in the media, and that it prevents the understanding of the requirements of the economy.

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