Media outlets and organizations defending journalism rights in Turkey have called on the public to claim their right to information, given the endless arrests of journalists and the critical threshold reached in media freedom.
Journalism enters another World Press Freedom Day in Turkey under the threat of uniformity. Particularly the arrests of Alican Uludağ and İsmail Arı following Merdan Yanardağ have more sharply revealed the destruction caused by the politicization of the judiciary to journalism rights in the last three months.
The BİA Media Monitoring Report covering the Jan - Feb - Mar 2026 period shows that Article 217/A of the Turkish Penal Code (TCK) regarding "publicly spreading misleading information" (disinformation) functioned as one of the primary tools for keeping journalists under judicial harassment during the process where Alican Uludağ and İsmail Arı, as well as magazine journalist Bilal Özcan and journalist Murat Kemaneci from Antalya Kemer, were arrested, and Furkan Karabay was kept under house arrest for a two-month period. Indeed, the regulation cited in the investigation where journalists Yavuz Oğhan, Şaban Sevinç, and Ruşen Çakır were kept under a foreign travel ban within the scope of the İstanbul Metropolitan Municipality (İBB) case was none other than 217/A.
While 29 media representatives were formally arrested last year, three were kept under house arrest and 58 were taken into custody. In early 2026, especially the imprisonment of Alican Uludağ and İsmail Arı shows that the government may once again resort to harsher and more strategic moves to break the influence of critical media as a new election process approaches.
Journalist and TELE1 editor-in-chief Merdan Yanardağ, who was arrested on Oct 27, 2025, will begin to be tried on "political espionage" allegations at the İstanbul 25th Heavy Penal Court on May 11. In the last three months, journalists Enver Aysever and Can Taşkın from Nevşehir were released.
13 journalists and one cartoonist detained
In the last three months, at least 13 journalists and one cartoonist were detained on grounds such as "insulting the president," "publicly spreading misleading information," "violation of the Military Prohibited Zones Law," "organization propaganda," "incitement to commit a crime," and "violation of the Law on Meetings and Demonstrations." The detention process in Turkey continues to serve the purposes of delegitimizing and punishing journalists.
For example, French journalist Raphaël Boukandoura was detained on the evening of Jan 19 while monitoring protests organized in İstanbul Sarıgazi upon the call made by the Peoples’ Equality and Democracy (DEM) Party, pro-Kurdish, and was released from the Removal Center two days later. Cartoonist Öznur Kalender also experienced detention at the Ankara Train Station due to "insulting the president" charges regarding a cartoon he drew.
Attacks on four local journalists; threats widespread
In the first three months of 2026, at least four journalists were attacked by local politicians and law enforcement officers in Aydın, Ankara, and Şanlıurfa Suruç, while another faced an attempted attack in Kocaeli. Among these journalists, Durmuş Tuna was wounded in the leg during an armed attack by a local politician in Aydın Söke, while at least six media representatives faced threats in both online and offline spaces.
In addition to Murat Ağırel and Özlem Gürses, exiled journalist Erk Acarer, Kocaeli Şehir newspaper managing editor Zehra Korucuoğlu, journalist Mücahit Tarlan from Bitlis, and Evrensel newspaper reporter Bahar Emreoğlu were the journalists who received threats during this period. Özlem Gürses filed a criminal complaint, announcing that she was subjected to a systematic lynch campaign on social media due to a broadcast on Sözcü TV where she presented news regarding Israel's attacks on Gaza.
Victims, not the state, lead the fight against impunity
It took 32 years for the judiciary and authorized institutions to think of investigating the whereabouts of the bomber and his family who placed the bomb in the vehicle of investigative journalist and Cumhuriyet newspaper writer Uğur Mumcu, causing his death. While the Pelitli Group in Trabzon and "security officers who paved the way for the murder on behalf of FETÖ" were punished regarding the 2007 assassination of Armenian-Turkish journalist Hrant Dink, those who prepared the ground for the murder by targeting Dink through actions, programs, and statements were left untouched.
Regarding the fatal attack on journalist Hakan Tosun, known for his environmental reporting and documentaries, in İstanbul Esenyurt on the night of Oct 10, 2025, two defendants will be tried for "intentional murder" at the Bakırköy 17th Heavy Penal Court on May 6. The investigation has not yet revealed whether Tosun was targeted due to his journalism activities.
Two positive developments occurred during this period: two defendants, who were acquitted the following year due to "lack of evidence" regarding a 2023 armed attack against journalist Yaman Kaya from Bursa, will be retried at the Bursa Heavy Penal Court on Jun 17. On the other hand, journalist Sibel Yükler won a lawsuit against the administration, which was ordered to pay 22,000 liras in compensation because she was subjected to a strip search in detention. The release of İsa Can Biler, who was being tried under arrest for allegedly firing 10 shots at the İzmir office of Evrensel newspaper on the night of Aug 13, 2025, after only three months and before all aspects of the attack were investigated, caused a reaction from newspaper officials and lawyers. Açık Radyo officials, whose license was confiscated due to a broadcast in which a listener referred to the "Armenian genocide," also applied to the Council of State after failing to achieve results from their previous initiatives.
10 acquittals in three months, sentences for three journalists
In the last three months, dozens of journalists, cartoonists, and media representatives were tried with prison sentences requested under the Turkish Penal Code (TCK), the Anti-Terror Law (TMK), and Law No. 2911 on Meetings and Demonstrations.
In the last three months, eight journalists (Elif Akgül, Engin Deniz İpek, Orhan Bursalı, Feyza Nur Çalıkoğlu, İnan Ketenciler, Dinçer Gökçe, Nilay Can, and Veysi Dündar) were acquitted in cases where they were tried on grounds such as "spreading personal data," "publicly spreading misleading information," "organization membership," and "violation of the Law on Meetings and Demonstrations." On the other hand, a prison sentence of 3 months and 22 days given without a hearing to Sendika news site official Ali Ergin Demirhan for a Charlie Hebdo report published nine years ago was increased to five months in prison at the end of a hearing held following an appeal.
Two journalists (Barış Terkoğlu and Evrim Kepenek) were convicted due to reports they authored and on allegations of "slander" or "insult." Terkoğlu was sentenced to 1 year and 15 days in prison for his article titled "They are preparing to eliminate İmamoğlu," while Kepenek, who brought allegations of abuse against a six-year-old child to the agenda, was given a judicial fine of 3,000 liras by a decision of the İzmir Selçuk penal court of first instance.
"Erdoğan" cases for 17 journalists and illustrators, 80 convictions in 11 years
Arbitrary cases regarding "insulting the president" charges against journalists in Turkey continued in the last three months with the trials of at least 17 journalists and cartoonists (Deniz Yücel, Sedef Kabaş, Baransel Ağca, Erk Acarer, Julien Serignac, Gerard Biard, Laurent Sourisseau, "Alice," Mehmet Tezkan, İbrahim Kahveci, Suat Toktaş, Ramazan Yurttapan, Haydar Ergül, Zafer Arapkirli, Hakkı Boltan, Doğan Pehlevan, and Rüstem Batum).
While no conviction decisions were encountered under this article in the last three-month period, journalist Zafer Arapkirli was acquitted in the first trial, and Sedef Kabaş was acquitted after the Court of Cassation’s reversal decision. Indeed, the 4th Penal Chamber of the Court of Cassation also ruled in favor of journalist Özgür Boğatekin, who had been sentenced to 1 year, 2 months, and 17 days in prison by a decision of the Gerger penal court of first instance due to social media posts.
Ultimately, Article 299 of the TCK created the basis for the trial of over 250 journalists and the conviction of at least 80 (some with suspended sentences) to prison or fines during President Erdoğan's 11-year term. Neither the 2016 Venice Commission recommendation nor the ECtHR’s October 2021 "Vedat Şorli" conviction against Turkey could, unfortunately, prevent journalists from being harassed with arbitrary cases in the intervening time.
Four journalists and three media outlets face 4 million 650 thousand liras in lawsuits
In the first three months of the year, at least five journalists and three media outlets were being tried in civil courts of first instance or commercial courts for a total of 4 million 650 thousand liras in compensation. The cases, based on published news, investigations, and columns, were filed following applications by Selçuk Bayraktar, Serhat Albayrak, Bilal Erdoğan, Berat Albayrak, Halkbank, and İris İnşaat.
Censorship of 242 news and journalism contents
While European Union countries have recently moved forward with many positive arrangements and regulations, such as the European Media Freedom Act (EMFA) for public broadcasting and the Digital Services Act for the protection of digital rights in media, authorities in Turkey were busy making 242 news and journalism contents, aimed at informing the public, invisible or deleted in the online space during the Jan - Mar 2026 period. The most widespread censorship in this period was directed at the report "They turned the state into a toy for the nephew" by Timur Soykan from BirGün newspaper and related journalism posts.
During this period, when negotiations conducted within the scope of the Kurdish issue faced difficulties, access bans were imposed on the X accounts of journalist Mahmut Bozarslan, Yeni Yaşam newspaper, and VOA Kurdish in the name of "national security and public order."
Additionally, press card discrimination against journalists in the İBB case, the prevention of media representatives from attending hearings in the trial regarding protests against Nurettin Yıldız, and bans on entry to the İstanbul Çağlayan Courthouse based on "verbal instructions from the prosecutor's office" were among the examples of the instrumentalization of procedures and authorities to restrict press freedom.
State convicted as applications reach Constitutional Court
The Constitutional Court, which continues to be a point of appeal against heavy pressures on the duty to inform, is being petitioned by journalist Alican Uludağ regarding his arbitrary detention and by Furkan Karabay regarding the prevention of his journalism activities through a house arrest decision.
Journalist Ruşen Takva, whose X social media account with 67,000 followers has been closed to access since a trustee was appointed to the Van Metropolitan Municipality, found his only recourse in seeking his rights by applying to the Constitutional Court through his lawyer. Exiled journalist and author Can Dündar is also waiting for a decision from the Constitutional Court, where he applied on Dec 9, 2024, regarding his X account with over 5 million followers being made inaccessible from Turkey in the name of "national security and public order."
In the last three months, within the scope of two applications, the Constitutional Court ruled for the payment of 34,000 liras in non-pecuniary damages to Gençağa Karafazlı, the owner and journalist of the Kuzeyteve.com site, and 2,500 liras to KRT.
Moderate RTÜK continues to issue fines
The Radio and Television Supreme Council (RTÜK) has appeared as a more moderate institution under the chairmanship and spokesmanship of Mehmet Daniş since Oct 2025, especially considering the provocative outbursts of his predecessor Ebubekir Şahin. However, this situation does not prevent the issuance of heavy administrative fines, particularly to critical channels. During the Jan, Feb, and Mar period, RTÜK issued a total of three administrative fines and one warning to TV outlets due to news and program broadcasts. The council imposed a total of 1,472,177.00 liras in administrative fines on TV outlets.
Additionally, during this period, following Fatih Altaylı, Flu TV, Cumhuriyet TV, and BirGün TV, the institution warned TELE2 Haber to apply for a license within 72 hours.
31 lost jobs in three months
In the last three months, at least 31 journalists, producers, presenters, and editorial staff members were terminated, citing transformations and disagreements in editorial policy. (EÖ/HA/VK)
