Published on Alternet (http://www.alternet.org)
Home > Noam Chomsky: The Country Where Journalism Is Being Murdered
________________________________________
Noam Chomsky: The Country Where Journalism Is Being Murdered
By Noam Chomsky [1], Christophe Deloire [2] / The Washington Post
November 18, 2015
Journalists are the watchdogs [3] of democracy, according to the European
Court of Human Rights. Anyone who wants to control a country without being
troubled by criticism tries to muzzle reporters, and unfortunately, Turkish
President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is a past master at stifling the cries of
freedom. As journalists from around the world converge on Antalya to cover
this weekends Group of 20 summit [4], many of their Turkish colleagues are
being denied accreditation.
Sidelining opposition media has become a bad habit in Turkey, which is
ranked 149th out of 180 countries in the latest Reporters Without Borders
World Press Freedom Index [5]. Four days before the Nov. 1 parliamentary
elections, the police stormed Ipek Media Group headquarters [6] and shut
down its two opposition dailies and two opposition TV stations. After
control of management had been secured and 71 journalists fired [7], these
outlets resumed operations with a new editorial line [8] verging on
caricature. The dailies, Bugun and Millet, ran Erdogans photo on the front
page along with the headlines The president among the people and Turkey
united.
Journalism is being murdered. The fact that the AKP, the ruling party for
the past 13 years, recovered an absolute majority [9] in parliament has not
sufficed to halt the oppression. Two days after the elections, two
journalists were jailed [10] on charges of inciting an armed revolt against
the state in a story. Since then, some 30 other journalists have been
placed under investigation for terrorist propaganda or insulting the
president the two most common charges.
On Nov. 17, 18 editors and publishers [11] will go on trial for terrorist
propaganda because of a photograph. They face up to 7½ years in prison. One
of these journalists, Cumhuriyet editor Can Dundar [12], already stood
accused of spying by Erdogan, who has vowed that Dundar wont get away
with it. His paper published evidence that Syria-bound trucks leased by
Turkeys National Intelligence Organization had, as suspected, been carrying
arms.
For years, the growing concentration of media ownership in the hands of
government allies has eroded pluralism and encouraged self-censorship. The
authorities have also reined in the Internet. Following draconian reforms,
the blocking of Web sites has become systematic. Turkey is responsible for
more than two-thirds [13] of the requests to Twitter to remove content. The
government does not hesitate to block the entire YouTube platform [14].
These practices compound problems inherited from the years of military rule:
laws restricting freedom of expression, a judicial culture centered on
defense of the state and impunity for police violence. The metastasizing
Syrian conflict and the resumption of fighting with Kurdish rebels have
accentuated governmental paranoia about critical journalists. Far from
defusing political and communal tension, the accelerating censorship and
aggressive government rhetoric have sharpened it. Demonstrators egged on by
the governments discourse attacked [15] the Istanbul headquarters of the
daily Hurriyet twice in early September.
The G-20s leaders must take stock of the course on which their host has
embarked. They need a stable Turkey to help limit the spread of the Syrian
chaos and to guarantee its peoples security and prosperity. The Turkish
government must stop fueling tension and, for this, it is essential that the
truth can be told. Reopening the space for democratic debate is essential
for stabilizing the country. Freedom of information is part of the solution.
Noam Chomsky is a professor of linguistics and philosophy at MIT.
Christophe Deloire is secretary general of Reporters Without Borders.
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Report typos and corrections to 'corrections@xxxxxxxxxxxx'. [16]
[17]
________________________________________
Source URL:
http://www.alternet.org/world/noam-chomsky-country-where-journalism-being-mu
rdered
Links:
[1] http://www.alternet.org/authors/noam-chomsky
[2] http://www.alternet.org/authors/christophe-deloire
[3] http://merlin.obs.coe.int/iris/2007/7/article1.en.html
[4] https://g20.org/turkey-2015/2015-event-schedule/
[5] https://index.rsf.org/#%21/
[6] http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-34656901
[7]
http://www.todayszaman.com/anasayfa_trustees-dismiss-71-journalists-after-un
lawful-i-pek-media-group-seizure_403227.html
[8] http://mobile.reuters.com/article/rbssPublishing/idUSL8N12U4BN20151030
[9] http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-34694420
[10]
http://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/nov/03/turkey-arrests-35-people-with-l
inks-to-erdogan-critic
[11]
http://www.todayszaman.com/anasayfa_18-turkish-journalists-face-75-years-in-
prison-for-publishing-photo-of-prosecutor-at-gunpoint_395569.html
[12]
http://en.rsf.org/turkey-rsf-backs-newspaper-under-attack-01-06-2015,47953.h
tml
[13] https://transparency.twitter.com/removal-requests/2015/jan-jun
[14]
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/worldviews/wp/2014/03/27/by-banning-yout
ube-has-turkey-revealed-just-how-damning-todays-leaked-recording-is/
[15]
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/09/18/world/europe/opposition-journalists-in-tur
key-increasingly-face-violent-attacks.html?_r=0
[16] mailto:corrections@xxxxxxxxxxxx?Subject=Typo on Noam Chomsky: The
Country Where Journalism Is Being Murdered
[17] http://www.alternet.org/
[18] http://www.alternet.org/%2Bnew_src%2B
Published on Alternet (http://www.alternet.org)
Home > Noam Chomsky: The Country Where Journalism Is Being Murdered
Noam Chomsky: The Country Where Journalism Is Being Murdered
By Noam Chomsky [1], Christophe Deloire [2] / The Washington Post
November 18, 2015
Journalists are the watchdogs [3] of democracy, according to the European
Court of Human Rights. Anyone who wants to control a country without being
troubled by criticism tries to muzzle reporters, and unfortunately, Turkish
President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is a past master at stifling the cries of
freedom. As journalists from around the world converge on Antalya to cover
this weekends Group of 20 summit [4], many of their Turkish colleagues are
being denied accreditation.
Sidelining opposition media has become a bad habit in Turkey, which is
ranked 149th out of 180 countries in the latest Reporters Without Borders
World Press Freedom Index [5]. Four days before the Nov. 1 parliamentary
elections, the police stormed Ipek Media Group headquarters [6] and shut
down its two opposition dailies and two opposition TV stations. After
control of management had been secured and 71 journalists fired [7], these
outlets resumed operations with a new editorial line [8] verging on
caricature. The dailies, Bugun and Millet, ran Erdogans photo on the front
page along with the headlines The president among the people and Turkey
united.
Journalism is being murdered. The fact that the AKP, the ruling party for
the past 13 years, recovered an absolute majority [9] in parliament has not
sufficed to halt the oppression. Two days after the elections, two
journalists were jailed [10] on charges of inciting an armed revolt against
the state in a story. Since then, some 30 other journalists have been
placed under investigation for terrorist propaganda or insulting the
president the two most common charges.
On Nov. 17, 18 editors and publishers [11] will go on trial for terrorist
propaganda because of a photograph. They face up to 7½ years in prison. One
of these journalists, Cumhuriyet editor Can Dundar [12], already stood
accused of spying by Erdogan, who has vowed that Dundar wont get away
with it. His paper published evidence that Syria-bound trucks leased by
Turkeys National Intelligence Organization had, as suspected, been carrying
arms.
For years, the growing concentration of media ownership in the hands of
government allies has eroded pluralism and encouraged self-censorship. The
authorities have also reined in the Internet. Following draconian reforms,
the blocking of Web sites has become systematic. Turkey is responsible for
more than two-thirds [13] of the requests to Twitter to remove content. The
government does not hesitate to block the entire YouTube platform [14].
These practices compound problems inherited from the years of military rule:
laws restricting freedom of expression, a judicial culture centered on
defense of the state and impunity for police violence. The metastasizing
Syrian conflict and the resumption of fighting with Kurdish rebels have
accentuated governmental paranoia about critical journalists. Far from
defusing political and communal tension, the accelerating censorship and
aggressive government rhetoric have sharpened it. Demonstrators egged on by
the governments discourse attacked [15] the Istanbul headquarters of the
daily Hurriyet twice in early September.
The G-20s leaders must take stock of the course on which their host has
embarked. They need a stable Turkey to help limit the spread of the Syrian
chaos and to guarantee its peoples security and prosperity. The Turkish
government must stop fueling tension and, for this, it is essential that the
truth can be told. Reopening the space for democratic debate is essential
for stabilizing the country. Freedom of information is part of the solution.
Noam Chomsky is a professor of linguistics and philosophy at MIT.
Christophe Deloire is secretary general of Reporters Without Borders.
Error! Hyperlink reference not valid.
Error! Hyperlink reference not valid.
Report typos and corrections to 'corrections@xxxxxxxxxxxx'. [16]
Error! Hyperlink reference not valid.[17]
Source URL:
http://www.alternet.org/world/noam-chomsky-country-where-journalism-being-mu
rdered
Links:
[1] http://www.alternet.org/authors/noam-chomsky
[2] http://www.alternet.org/authors/christophe-deloire
[3] http://merlin.obs.coe.int/iris/2007/7/article1.en.html
[4] https://g20.org/turkey-2015/2015-event-schedule/
[5] https://index.rsf.org/#%21/
[6] http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-34656901
[7]
http://www.todayszaman.com/anasayfa_trustees-dismiss-71-journalists-after-un
lawful-i-pek-media-group-seizure_403227.html
[8] http://mobile.reuters.com/article/rbssPublishing/idUSL8N12U4BN20151030
[9] http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-34694420
[10]
http://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/nov/03/turkey-arrests-35-people-with-l
inks-to-erdogan-critic
[11]
http://www.todayszaman.com/anasayfa_18-turkish-journalists-face-75-years-in-
prison-for-publishing-photo-of-prosecutor-at-gunpoint_395569.html
[12]
http://en.rsf.org/turkey-rsf-backs-newspaper-under-attack-01-06-2015,47953.h
tml
[13] https://transparency.twitter.com/removal-requests/2015/jan-jun
[14]
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/worldviews/wp/2014/03/27/by-banning-yout
ube-has-turkey-revealed-just-how-damning-todays-leaked-recording-is/
[15]
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/09/18/world/europe/opposition-journalists-in-tur
key-increasingly-face-violent-attacks.html?_r=0
[16] mailto:corrections@xxxxxxxxxxxx?Subject=Typo on Noam Chomsky: The
Country Where Journalism Is Being Murdered
[17] http://www.alternet.org/
[18] http://www.alternet.org/%2Bnew_src%2B
