ISTANBUL
Journalist Mustafa Akyol (L) and Foreign Policy Analyst Sedat Laçiner (Photo: Today’s Zaman)
Star, a pro-government daily, has fired two of its critical columnists, Sedat Laçiner and Mustafa Akyol. Both columnists were known to be liberal supporters of the government in the past.
Akyol and Laçiner announced on their Twitter accounts on Saturday that the newspaper had asked them to suspend writing for the daily for a period of time. Akyol, who is also a contributor to the International New York Times, thanked the newspaper and said he will continue to write what he believes. Although known for their pro-government stances, both columnists did not refrain from criticizing many of the government’s policies they deemed flawed.
Akyol, a liberal democrat and author of “Islam without Extremes: A Muslim Case for Liberty,” said the daily censored one of his columns several months ago. He shared the censored piece with his readers via Twitter.
Laçiner, a prominent foreign policy analyst who headed a well-known think tank, the International Strategic Research Organization (USAK), vehemently criticizes the government’s recent policies, which many observers argue has deepened societal polarization.
Star, along with other fellow pro-government newspapers, has fired dozens of columnists and journalists in the past year as the government stepped up its measures to restrict freedom of the media. Freedom House ranked Turkey in the category of “Not Free” this year with regard to press freedom, while other press advocacy bodies have described Turkey as one of the worst places to do journalism.
Firing critical figures has turned to a worrying pattern that makes it harder for reporters to practice journalism in an increasingly authoritarian environment. The authenticity of a number of wiretapped phone conversations revealing the enormous scale of government meddling in media has been confirmed by Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan; this runs against the basic tenets of liberal democracy, in which press freedom is a key feature of a free and democratic society.
Among other worrying signs that plunge journalism into an unfavorable terrain in Turkey, economic hardships have also taken a toll on some media outlets, with the venerable Radikal daily saying it will continue online after suspending its print edition. The announcement has been met with mixed responses, with loyal readers rushing to express their fury against what they describe as the existence of an unhealthy economic environment fed by patronage ties between government authorities and media executives.
While some newspapers manage to survive economic challenges thanks to generous funding from business tycoons who have cultivated strong and close ties with the government, several media outlets have had to throw in the towel by either scaling down their size and personnel or by saying good-bye to journalism.