Turkish Journalists Should Enter the Fray against Windmills

On the second day of the training program "From the Classroom to the Newsroom" organized by the BİA Independent Communication Network, Özlem Dalkıran from the Helsinki Citizens Assembly and journalist Hilmi Hacaloğlu spoke to the graduates on journalism focussing on human rights.

Dalkiran: Rights organisations need the media as the media need rights organisations

In her speech, Dalkıran referred to the relationship between non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and journalism in her speech. Dalkiran first talked about the functioning of organizations focusing on rights. She said that "rights organizations who are reporting about rights violations, who are supporting the victims and who are working to create social awareness need the media just as much as the media need the rights organisations".

Dalkıran explained that the cooperation between rights organisations and the media plays an important part in transforming the society. She pointed out that one of the most important examples for this was the result of the Engin Ceber case whose torturers received life sentences.

Hacaloglu: Interrogative journalists have to transform the media

Halicioglu shared his journalism experience with the graduates from 25 different universities. He emphasized that "journalists have to know what is going on in the world, and therefore need to know foreign languages". He continued, "You are forced to take some balances into account for your reports to be published. But the media needs Don Quijotes. The questioning minds need to transform the media." (ÇT/VK)