Countries of the World/COUNTRYS.BIN/dp/0377/03773.txt

Text File | 1991-06-25 | 10KB | 179 lines

$Unique_ID{COW03773}
$Pretitle{280}
$Title{Turkey
Chapter 4D.   Mass Communications}
$Subtitle{}
$Author{Jo Ann Browning Seeley}
$Affiliation{HQ, Department of the Army}
$Subject{press
government
television
journalists
radio
turkey
turkish
freedom
newspapers
political}
$Date{1987}
$Log{}
Country:     Turkey
Book:        Turkey, A Country Study
Author:      Jo Ann Browning Seeley
Affiliation: HQ, Department of the Army
Date:        1987

Chapter 4D.   Mass Communications

     In most democratic countries, the press, radio, and television
traditionally serve as vehicles for the expression of public opinion, which in
turn influences the government in varying degrees. The Turkish media have
frequently been hampered in carrying out this role. In the 1960s and 1970s,
the press became increasingly political and polemical, mirroring the
polarization that characterized Turkish society during those decades. The
government responded to criticism of its policies by closing down newspapers
and jailing journalists. By 1987 there was a marked increase in freedom of
expression and criticism, but restrictive press laws remained in effect and
could be applied at any time.

Newspapers and Periodicals

     The importance of the press in Turkish cultural and political life has
increased with the country's literacy rate. Literacy in Turkey stood at 70
percent in 1986, a figure low by Western standards, but considerably higher
than that of Turkey's Middle Eastern neighbors. In the mid-1980s, Turkey's
largest newspapers had circulations of between 92,000 and 850,000. A few daily
papers accounted for a large percentage of total newspaper circulation,
although there were numerous regional and special interest publications with
considerably smaller readerships. Most of the large daily newspapers were
published in Istanbul and, with the exception of Cumhuriyet (Republic), were
organized as holding companies.

     Cumhuriyet has traditionally been considered the most serious and
influential of the daily newspapers. Founded in 1923 to support Ataturk's
revolution, it generally followed the Kemalist tradition. Pro-RPP during the
1960s and 1970s, it moved increasingly to the left, but in the 1980s had
returned to a moderate left position with an emphasis on in- depth coverage.
Its economic reporting had become a major source of information for the
business community.

     Another respected and influential paper was the independent Milliyet
(Nationality), which had a liberal orientation. It was founded after the shift
to a multiparty system, as were the major newspapers of the 1980s.
Conservative views found expression in the right- wing Tercuman (Interpreter),
which was pro-JP in the 1970s and had not significantly changed its position
by the late 1980s.

     The newspaper with the greatest circulation, Hurriyet (Freedom), was less
serious than the afore-mentioned dailies and appealed to a broader spectrum of
the population. An independent paper, it emphasized personal interest stories.
It had a more sensational tone and made greater use of color and supplements.
The newspaper Gunaydin (Good Morning), owned by the same family as the
Hurriyet, had a similar style and mass appeal.

     There were also local and provincial newspapers as well as a variety of
periodicals. The satirical weekly publication Girgir was considered one of the
leading humor magazines of the world. In addition, literary periodicals such
as the Milliyet Sanat (National Art), political pamphlets, and news magazines
increased in numbers and in circulation during the 1980s.

     The main news agency in Turkey was the semiofficial but autonomous
Anadolu Ajansi (Anatolian Agency). Founded by Ataturk in 1920, its initial
function was to issue news bulletins, printed pamphlets, and books both within
the country and for distribution abroad. In 1987 the agency had regional
offices in Turkey's major cities, as well as correspondents throughout the
country. It also had foreign correspondents in all the major cities of the
world. Several private agencies also served the press.

     The Turkish press has experienced varying degrees of censorship
throughout its history. Severely restricted in the Ottoman days, the press
enjoyed a brief period of freedom in the Young Turk era (see The Young Turks,
ch. 1). The issue of freedom of the press was a constant source of controversy
in republican Turkey. During the late 1950s, pre- publication censorship was
common, even though unconstitutional. Police with court orders would remove
objectionable material from the papers as they went to press, resulting in
blank columns when the issues appeared. In addition, the Menderes government
frequently fined and jailed journalists.

     There was greater freedom of expression during the 1960s and 1970s,
although the press was still hampered by restrictive laws and other controls,
and journalists continued to be jailed. More threatening than government
control was the terrorism that escalated in the late 1970s. For example, the
editor of the influential daily Milliyet was among the journalists who lost
their lives as a result of political violence.

     During the three years of military rule, governmental control of the
press became increasingly rigorous. The authorities frequently warned
publishers and editors not to print certain material, and newspapers were
closed down when the government thought they had not adequately censored
themselves. Trials of journalists received worldwide publicity and resulted in
protests to the Turkish government.

     Although the 1982 Constitution recognizes freedom of the press and
outlaws censorship, it also facilitates government control through a provision
against writing or printing material that threatens the security or the
integrity of the state or that tends to "incite offense, riot or
insurrection." It further stipulates that "periodicals published in Turkey may
be temporarily suspended by court sentence if found guilty of publishing
material which contravenes the indivisible integrity of the state . . .
national security or public morals." Furthermore, any publication that appears
to be a continuation of a suspended periodical is also subject to
confiscation.

     The Press Law of November 1983 gave local public prosecutors the power to
confiscate issues of any publication before it was offered for sale and
allowed the Council of Ministers to ban foreign publications that represented
"a danger to the unity of the country, the Constitution, national security, or
public morality." This law also made journalists subject to fines or
imprisonment for publishing articles that might lead to the committing of a
crime or the revealing of state secrets. Printing houses were subject to
closure for publishing "subversive" literature. Other restrictions outlawed
any articles or pictures critical of the military leaders or of Ataturk as
well as publications supporting proscribed political parties.

     By 1986 journalists were gaining greater freedom to report and criticize.
Government control continued to be exercised, but less frequently; there were
no newspaper shutdowns in the 1985-87 period. Journalists seemed initially
cautious about testing the boundaries of this freedom, and their reporting
tended to emphasize economic and financial issues rather than political
controversies. However, there were indications of greater daring on the part
of journalists, and in 1986 Cumhuriyet went so far as to criticize the
president.

Radio and Television

     Radio broadcasting, which began in Turkey in 1927, was perceived by
Ataturk as a means to promote modernization and nationalism. The government
took control of Turkish radio by opening its own station in 1938. Radio
programming, under the supervision of the Bureau of the Press Directorate,
served the goals of government. It primarily provided news and information
about the republic and government activities such as agricultural innovations.

     After the Turkish Radio and Television Corpor