10-day unprecedented blackout on pro-opposition Sözcü TV starts tomorrow
Pro-opposition broadcaster Sözcü TV will face a 10-day broadcast blackout beginning at midnight on Jul 8, following a court decision upholding a suspension imposed by the Radio and Television Supreme Council (RTÜK).
The Ankara 7th Administrative Court rejected Sözcü TV's appeal and confirmed RTÜK’s penalty, which was issued over content deemed to violate broadcasting regulations.
The suspension concerns the broadcaster's coverage of the widespread protests following the arrest of İstanbul Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu on corruption-related charges. The media watchdog had concluded that comments made by guests on Sözcü TV "incited the public into hatred and enmity."
Pro-opposition TV channel handed 10-day blackout over İmamoğlu protest coverage
Meanwhile, another 10-day penalty targeting Halk TV, another major pro-opposition outlet, has been lifted.
The network had been handed the blackout over remarks made by nuclear engineer Tolga Yarman on a program.
Yarman had said, “Turkey is not becoming more religious, but more sectarian,” and claimed, “if we look from the moment the Yavuz Sultan Selim Bridge was named, we have been incited against Iran.”
RTÜK argued the statements incited hatred and hostility.
However, the Ankara 21st Administrative Court has suspended the enforcement of the penalty against Halk TV, giving the channel at least 30 more days on air. The court asked RTÜK to provide a full legal basis for its decision, including recordings, meeting notes, and relevant legislation.
RTÜK has seven days to appeal the suspension. If the appeal is upheld, Halk TV could still be forced off air for 10 days.
Nacho Sanchez Amor, a socialist member of the European Parliament and the EU’s rapporteur on Turkey, criticized the penalties in a social media post on Jul 4.
“I doubt even George Orwell could think of something like RTÜK!” he wrote. “Crushing fines of 10-day blackouts to Sözcü TV and Halk TV for futile comments! Freedom of media and speech are becoming a distant memory in Turkey. There is now a generation that never knew it, and it's so sad.” (VK)
