CHP cancels deal with Halk TV

Click to read the article in Turkish

The leadership battle within the Republican People's Party is going on following the presidential and parliamentary elections. 

A zoom meeting that İstanbul Metropolitan Municipality Major Ekrem İmamoğlu made with some names in the party leadership had appeared on social media last week. 

Following the leakage some new steps are being taken by the two groups in the party.  

Eren Erdem, who was appointed as Vice President following the elections, announced that a deal between CHP and Halk TV was ended. It was asserted that the Halk TV television channel, Sözcü newspaper and Oda TV news portal was closer to the İmamoğlu front in the race in CHP.  

Statement from CHP Vice President Eren Erdem

Erdem issued a statement where he said their aim was not to punish Halk TV employees.

"Our right to prefer to make or not make advertising agreements with agencies, news outlets or the similar is reserved. We will not bring censorship or any bans. This is our framework. So some reports, which I believe were made because of our decision "to terminate all advertisements and purchase of live broadcast services" do not reflect the truth or the facts," Erdem said. 

"While there are so many important issues on the agenda in Turkey, we find it unappropriate that we are at the center of the discussion. We will continue focusing on the issues that are of interest to our people, in line with their needs and expectations. 

Halk TV management on the other hand asserted that the deal was made in return for broadcasting the parliamentary group meetings of CHP and the announcements by the vice presidents of the party. 

'Are there any similar agreements?'

Halk TV Editor-in-Chief Bengü Şap Babaeker responded to Eren Erdem during a program on the TV channel. 

"As Halk TV, we have two questions to CHP. First we want Eren Erdem to announce the amount of this deal. How much payment has been made? There is a perception, as if CHP is financing Halk TV. And again, has such a deal been made only with Halk TV or with other newspapers and news outlets as well? Are there similar agreements and have they also been cancelled," Babaeker asked. 

'Jurnalists who receive money should be disclosed'

It was reported that the CHP leader Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu said, "Some of the issues that we talk among ourselves should of course be kept between us. But our internal issues are being discussed in the public over some columnists. I know what amount of salaries some are receiving," in a meeting held with the mayors of the party.  

A demand was raised on social media following CHP's decision that the journalists who receive money should be disclosed. 

Yıldız Yazıcıoğlu, a journalist currently working for KRT TV wrote that the government was as the moment following CHP with pleasure, She also wrote, "Our occupation, journalism has unfortunately become a ring of a chain of scandals." She invited the journalism unions, organizations and CHP to request explanations about the journalist who receive money and to react to the situation. 

Ve ne yazık ki #gazetecilik mesleğimiz rezalet zinciri halkası haline geldi @Disk_Basin_is @cgdgenelmerkez @Cemiyet1946 @TGS_org_tr acilen "para alan gazeteciler" mevzusunda açıklama talep etmeli, tepki koyulmalı

— Yıldız Yazıcıoğlu (@journalofyy) July 22, 2023

Murat Ağırel, a columnist in Yeniçağ newspaper who also participates in many programs broadcast on Halk TV also tweeted and wanted Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu to disclose the salaries that the journalists he refers to are receiving. 

Kılıçdaroğlu şöyle diyor:

“Bizim parti içinde konuştuğumuz şeylerin bir kısmı tabi ki aramızda kalmalıdır. Ama köşe yazarları üzerinden parti içi meseleler tartıştırılıyor. Ben kimin nereden ne kadar maaş aldığını iyi biliyorum.”

Sayın @kilicdarogluk kim nereden ne kadar maaş… https://t.co/Bwd7JvqZHV

— Murat AĞIREL (@muratagirel) July 23, 2023

  (Mİ/PE)