What is January 10 Working Journalists Day and how did it emerge? January 10 Working Journalists Day messages

Working Journalists Day has been celebrated in Turkey since 1962.

Initially celebrated under the name "Working Journalists Festival," this day was changed to "January 10 Working Journalists Day" in 1971 following a military intervention, as some rights granted to journalists were revoked.

HOW DID JANUARY 10 WORKING JOURNALISTS DAY EMERGE?

The foundation of Working Journalists Day was laid with "Law No. 212," which was enacted on January 4, 1961, and provided certain rights and legal protections to press workers. This regulation was published in the Official Gazette, making January 10 a special day of celebration.

The "Nine Bosses Incident," which marked an important period in the defense of journalists' rights, left its mark on the history of the press.

During this period, journalists decided to publish a newspaper called "Basın" (Press) and carried out a three-day boycott.

The Basın newspaper began publication on January 11 and continued its broadcast regularly throughout the boycott. Working Journalists Day emerged as a result of this event, and January 10 began to be celebrated as the "Working Journalists Festival."

Today, it has taken the form of "Working Journalists Day" since 1971.

WHAT IS THE NINE BOSSES INCIDENT?

The owners of 9 newspapers, who did not want to accept the responsibilities imposed on them by Law No. 212, signed a joint declaration claiming that Law No. 212 and Law No. 195 regarding the formation of the Press Advertisement Agency would create professional drawbacks, and announced that they were closing their newspapers for 3 days.

Following this development, which went down in press history as the "Nine Bosses Incident," journalists carried out various protest actions and published a newspaper called "Basın" throughout the boycott so as not to leave the public without a newspaper.

The Basın newspaper began publication on January 11 with the headline "We Are Always at the Service of the People" and continued its publication regularly during the three-day boycott. The editorial of the first issue of the newspaper included the following statements:

"Even on days when our fundamental rights and freedoms are truly restricted, and not only the press but the entire country is placed into an unprecedented danger, the move made by newspaper owners who did not close their papers or resort to protests, now for an advertisement agency, will surely not occupy an honorable place in our press history.

Publishing a newspaper is not like running a sock factory. The press is a public service."

JANUARY 10 WORKING JOURNALISTS DAY MESSAGES

• Happy day to all journalists who work tirelessly without regard for holidays, New Year's, or weekends, and who labor for the public's right to receive information... Glad you exist...
• Journalists should write what they see, think, and know with sincerity. (Mustafa Kemal Atatürk)
• Happy day to all journalists who perform their duties properly, as in every profession! Wishing you always receive your due...
• A good newspaper is a nation talking to itself. (Özdemir Asaf)
• Happy January 10 Working Journalists Day to all journalists who are accurate, impartial, and do not separate their pens from right, truth, and justice.
• I would prefer a newspaper without a government to a government without a newspaper. (Jefferson)
• Three newspapers are more to be feared than a hundred thousand bayonets. (Napoleon)
• Those who govern us are governments and newspapers. (Wendell Phillips)