| Publication |
2013.
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| Summary/Abstract |
Turkey is a country where democratization process has been repeatedly interrupted by military interventions in the past 50 years. Censorship and self-censorship have become ordinary practices in the media, mainly due to weak parliamentary representations followed by oppressive coup periods. Yet even though a democratically elected government is currently in charge of the country, censorship of the press remains to be a common and systematic to silence alternative views. It is also claimed that self-censorship is widespread within the press. A report published by Freedom House in 2010 argues that while Turkish officials continue to enforce strict laws, journalists are frequently jailed for discussing issues such as the Kurdish problem, the military or political Islam. The government that is led by the Justice and Development Party (Adalet ve Kalkinma Partisi) is continuing to crack down on unfavorable press coverage. This article presents the findings of a survey titled "Censorship and Self-Censorship in Turkey, 2011." The participants of the study were Turkish journalists and the questions revolved around their personal experiences with regards to censorship and self-censorship. Their answers reveal why Turkish media seldom makes news for public interest.
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