The absurdity in the rush to punish lieutenants

Almost all pro-government media outlets, from Sabah to Akşam, Hürriyet, Yeni Akit, and Yeni Şafak, used the same headlines again: "Organized indiscipline," "MSB: The issue is indiscipline," "There is no 'but' for indiscipline," and "There are no ifs or buts about indiscipline."

You might think the Ministry of National Defense (MSB) had made an official statement. But that is not the case. Almost all the reports cite "statements from MSB sources." This is truly comical journalism. The source of a "statement" should be "clear"; you know who made it and convey that to the reader and viewer. However, it was stated that this "statement" was not made by the ministry itself, but by "sources" within the ministry. In other words, the person making the "statement" was being hidden! 

In journalism, the conditions for withholding the name of a news "source" are clear. Primarily, the name is withheld to protect the source, but in reports with anonymous sources, information is provided rather than opinions or statements. In these reports, however, more opinion than information was being conveyed regarding the five lieutenants referred to disciplinary action for collectively taking an oath saying "We are the soldiers of Mustafa Kemal" after their graduation ceremony; in fact, a verdict was being declared against them.

Moreover, the lead of the Anadolu Agency report stated that "MSB sources answered journalists' questions following the press briefing held at the ministry," indirectly revealing who the "sources at the MSB" were. This is because, in the report on the "press briefing" released the same day, the name and photograph of Press and Public Relations Advisor Rear Admiral Zeki Aktürk were clearly published! This was another absurdity in itself.

And the same absurdity was repeated again last week. Following the press conference, reports were published this time under the headline: "Statement from MSB sources: Disciplinary process has begun for the lieutenants." 

It is clear that journalists are writing their reports exactly as Rear Admiral Aktürk wishes. As is well known, the MSB has been teaching journalism to defense correspondents, organizing seminars for two terms now; this is the result.

The reason for wanting to keep such an obvious source hidden is also well known. The ministry is making an effort to portray the lieutenants as guilty but is also avoiding officially committing an illegality. Journalists, in turn, are acting as intermediaries in violating the rights of the lieutenants, against whom no decision has yet been made. They are taking the responsibility for black propaganda upon their own shoulders.

It was not long ago, just nine years, that the General Staff issued a statement requesting that news reports not be written with anonymous sources referred to as "General Staff sources." Now, the MSB itself is orchestrating these reports.

"Ethical journalism" in a party newspaper 

On the day of the Saadet Party congress, three pages of the Millî Gazete, including the front page, were dedicated to the event. Under the headline "Great congress, great excitement," it was stated that the party headquarters had nominated Kayseri MP Mahmut Arıkan as the candidate to replace Temel Karamollaoğlu. 

However, the pages of coverage made no mention that former Chairman Mustafa Kamalak and Party Spokesperson Birol Aydın were also candidates. As if Mahmut Arıkan were the sole candidate, only his photos and speeches were featured.

Millî Gazete continued this same style of "journalism" after the congress. It did not inform its readers that Mustafa Kamalak could not become a candidate because he failed to collect enough signatures. They wrote that Birol Aydın, whose speech they published a short excerpt from, had "collected enough signatures," but they did not report that he was a "candidate" or the number of votes he received at the congress. Yet, they placed a photo in the newspaper of Kamalak and Aydın—whose candidacies they had concealed—standing with Arıkan and Karamollaoğlu, with the caption "They took the stage together!" The caption under that photo also made no mention of their candidacies.

Furthermore, in their coverage of the congress, they did not mention that AKP representatives left the hall after slogans of "Murderer Israel, collaborator AKP" were chanted by the audience while Karamollaoğlu was speaking.  

Millî Gazete is the publication organ of the Saadet Party. It is clear that they practice partisan journalism. However, presenting this as principled, high-quality journalism is an injustice to independent and critical journalism, which approaches developments in the political arena with an objective eye and conveys the truth in its raw form. 

Millî Gazete Editor-in-Chief Mustafa Kurdaş recently stated at an awards ceremony that they follow a consistent and uncompromising line and practice "ethical journalism." I understand their being partisan, but "ethical journalism" primarily requires providing information to readers in its entirety. If being partisan leads to distorting information and bending the truth, then one cannot speak of journalism there. 

Can there be no bad people among those wearing turbans or chadors?

By raining down fines on television channels targeted by President Erdoğan and MHP Chairman Bahçeli, RTÜK has once again proven that it functions as a subsidiary of the AKP.

There are two messages RTÜK is sending to television stations with these fines: First, in TV series, people who are "turbaned, bearded, veiled, chador-wearing, or robed" must always be portrayed as good, decent people who never do anything wrong, and no negativity can be attributed to them! However, any kind of malice can be broadcast regarding people who are clean-shaven, without turbans, headscarves, chadors, or robes; that is permitted! 

In short, they want the government's Islamist way of life to dominate television series. This is the meaning behind the fine imposed on Kanal D for covering the "subject of child marriage and murder within a religious sect" in the series "Arka Sokaklar" (Back Streets).

The second message is that not the slightest criticism, objection, or propaganda against the government shall be broadcast! Yet, pro-government channels will be free to conduct propaganda in favor of the AKP as they please and make accusations against the opposition! Propaganda is free for them, while everything will be forbidden for government critics. This is the meaning behind the fines imposed on Halk TV, Sözcü TV, and Flash Haber on the grounds that they "did not comply with the principles of impartiality and accuracy." 

Commenting on the RTÜK decision on Halk TV immediately after it was announced, İsmail Saymaz objected, saying, "Propagandizing against the government is a right. How can it be a crime?" 

"It is free and a right to smear the opposition, slander, and attack the opposition's chairman and mayors on dozens of channels, starting with TRT. In contrast, criticizing the government and expressing views against the government is a crime. Where did you come up with this? Are TRT, AA, Sabah, CNN, and other channels all impartial, and only Halk TV biased? A decision that punishes broadcasting that criticizes the government in Turkey does not derive its power from the law."

Saymaz continued his remarks by saying, "Who are you to tell me what to do? I will conduct propaganda if I want to. I will criticize if I want to, and I will speak against it if I want to." In the evening broadcast, he emphasized that he defends the right to propaganda, but as a journalist, he does not engage in propaganda himself.

And that is the truth. Of course, propaganda against the government cannot be banned, but ethically, a journalist does not engage in propaganda; they convey their analysis and commentary, provide information, criticize, and question. 

There was no propaganda in the Halk TV program that was already penalized by RTÜK and used as a pretext by Bahçeli to openly threaten, saying, 'We will make them pay through their noses'; instead, the discussion focused on the resignation of three MPs from the MHP who were involved in gold smuggling. It was not propaganda, but rather the provision of information and the expression of criticism. 

RTÜK also penalized Star and Show TV this time due to violent scenes in their series, yet it once again ignored the violent scenes on TRT and other pro-government channels. Of course, RTÜK did not neglect to penalize Now TV and Tele1 as well.

Tarnishing the murdered woman

A shuttle driver named Binali Kara murdered a woman named Güllü Özcan and then committed suicide inside the same shuttle vehicle. This murder was published in the news with headlines such as 'Forbidden love murder' and 'He killed his lover and took his own life'. 

Now, the murdered woman's young daughter is striving to clear her mother's memory. On social media, she writes that her mother had no relationship with this man and that her only 'fault' was rejecting him. Her primary effort is to have the 'language' of the news reports that portray her mother as a 'victim of forbidden love' corrected. She stated the following in one of her posts:

'Even if such a thing had happened, you cannot embellish it under the name of a 'forbidden love murder.' I am so full of anger and resentment that I cannot gather my words. This deep pain caused by the loss of my mother will never leave me. I want the news pages I have tagged to correct their writing style; I do not want my mother to be remembered this way.'

It is necessary to respect the pain of a young girl who lost her father four months ago and then had her mother murdered, and to empathize with her. I hope the journalist colleagues who published these reports hear this young girl's cry and correct the language of their news. 

In a single sentence.

On CNN Türk, while developments in Syria were being discussed, Mesut Hakkı Caşın said, "Turkey surely isn't going to just cover its a-- right here," prompting host Fulya Kalfa to warn him: "Professor, could you please be careful with the expressions you use? Sometimes things slip out."

Hürriyet and Milliyet did not include in their reports the protest by a young person at a TRT World meeting, nor President Erdoğan's response: "My child, don't be the tongue and mouth of the Zionists."

In the Anadolu Agency report titled "Person wanted by Interpol with a red notice captured in Fethiye," the individual's name was missing; sites such as Diken, TRTHaber, and 24TV also published the report incompletely. 

The source for Cumhuriyet's report, "A trustee has been appointed for the neighborhood headman as well," was cited as a social media post by Barış Yarkadaş, yet it was presented with a reporter's byline as if it were an exclusive story. 

Yeni Şafak published a promotional text for a furniture company as a full-page spread under the headline "We are shaping the furniture of the future," without including any advertising disclaimer, making it appear as a news report. 

Milliyet legitimized the police blocking women and shutting down the entire district for hours by writing, "Beyoğlu and its surroundings were closed due to expected unauthorized demonstrations," as if the law required permission to hold a demonstration.

Sabah published photos of demonstrations in Edirne, Kars, Yozgat, Uşak, Adana, and Trabzon on the "International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women," but did not report on the women's demonstration in Istanbul at all.

Hürriyet columnist Abdülkadir Selvi wrote that President Erdoğan has "pardoned" former CHP Chairman Kılıçdaroğlu, but "withdrawing a lawsuit" is a waiver, not a "pardon."  

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