Winners of the 2026 Turkish Journalists Association Press Freedom Awards announced

The winners of the 2026 Press Freedom Awards, presented by the Turkish Journalists Association (TGC) since 1989 to emphasize the importance of press freedom, have been announced. The Selection Committee, which met on July 3, 2026, shared with the public the names deemed worthy of the award in the individual and institutional categories, along with their justifications.

INDIVIDUAL AWARD WINNERS

• * İsmail Arı: Awarded for his commitment to the duty of uncovering the truth through his reporting on the oversight of public power, religious sect and community structures, human rights violations, and judicial processes, despite all forms of pressure, in the name of the public's right to information.
• * Alican Uludağ: Awarded for his determination to deliver the truth to the public despite all pressures and threats, maintaining a journalism approach based on public interest in his reports on the judiciary, security bureaucracy, human rights violations, and corruption.
  
  

INSTITUTIONAL AWARD WINNERS

• * T24 İnternet Newspaper: Deemed worthy of the award for the independent, pluralistic, and critical journalism environment it provides for journalists; its qualified reporting in the fields of human rights violations, judiciary, democracy, women's rights, labor, environment, and freedom of the press and expression; and its defense of universal journalistic principles against censorship, pressure, and discriminatory practices.
• * Tele1 News Press Workers: Awarded for maintaining independent broadcasting while adhering to professional principles under very difficult conditions following the appointment of a trustee to the channel and the arrest of Editor-in-Chief Merdan Yanardağ, for prioritizing the public interest, and for not giving up the struggle for press freedom.
• * Cumhuriyet TV Press Workers: Deemed worthy of the award for their reporting approach that tirelessly defends press freedom despite pressures, censorship, and broadcasting bans, without compromising on independent journalism principles and Republican values.

THE SIGNIFICANCE OF JULY 24 AND THE SELECTION COMMITTEE

The TGC Press Freedom Awards are presented annually on July 24, the anniversary of the first lifting of press censorship in the Ottoman Empire. This date, which was celebrated as "Press Day" until the 1971 coup, has since been accepted by the TGC as the "Day of Struggle for Press Freedom."

The Selection Committee for this year's awards included: Turkish Writers' Union President Adnan Özyalçıner (Chair), TGC Vice President Doğan Şentürk, Turkish Publishers Association President Kenan Kocatürk, Lawyer Nazan Moroğlu from the Istanbul Bar Association, Istanbul Medical Chamber President Prof. Dr. Talat Kırış, TGC Secretary General Sibel Güneş (Secretary), T24 columnist Tuğrul Eryılmaz, TGC President Vahap Munyar, and Communication Academician Prof. Dr. Yasemin Giritli İnceoğlu.