Turkey's independent media protest Google over ‘algorithmic censorship'

Nine independent news outlets have issued a joint statement protesting Google, accusing the tech giant of severely restricting their visibility in search results and news aggregation services. The media groups say that changes in Google’s algorithm have led to a sharp decline in reader traffic, significantly impacting their reach and revenue.

The statement claims that 98% of traffic referrals from Google’s Discover and News services have been cut off for many news websites, particularly independent media. The restrictions were first implemented in October, lasting for about a month, and were reintroduced at the end of January, according to the statement.

The protest comes a day after Gazete Duvar, one of Turkey's leading independent news platforms, announced its closure due to financial struggles, which it attributed in part to Google's policy changes.

‘No explanation, no accountability’

The media outlets say they have been unable to establish a direct and consistent dialogue with Google, despite repeated efforts to understand the drastic decline in traffic.

"We have received no reasonable explanation such as an algorithm update for these sudden and severe drops in traffic," the statement reads.

The outlets argue that Google’s unregulated control over traffic flows not only limits the visibility of certain media organizations but also restricts public access to news. "This ‘new’ digital news ecosystem, where independent media is largely ignored by Google, makes it harder for the public to access journalism. In the long run, it risks causing irreparable financial damage to media institutions that are already struggling against various pressures.

"The fact that Gazete Duvar had to shut down while we were drafting this statement shows just how real and urgent this threat is."

Call for action

The media outlets announced that they plan to file a complaint with Turkey's Competition Authority over Google’s practices.

They also called on state institutions to take necessary measures to prevent tech monopolies from undermining the public’s right to information and independent journalism. They urged policymakers to strengthen local media while ensuring transparent and inclusive discussions with all media stakeholders.

The statement also included a message to readers, encouraging them to visit news websites directly and to support independent journalism through reader donations.

The joint call to action was signed by Artı Gerçek, BirGün, Diken, Ekonomim, Gazete Pencere, İlke TV, Kısa Dalga, Medyascope and T24

Conglomerate media more visible on Google News

A review of the Google News app on Android using an account that follows the protesting outlets revealed that their news articles were absent from sections like "For You," "Headlines," "Turkey," and "World."

Instead, the news featured in these sections largely came from state-affiliated media, conglomerate-owned news outlets, and official government websites, despite those sources were not being followed. International news agencies such as BBC Turkish and Euronews Turkish were also prominently featured.

Outlets owned by Demirören Media Group, which has close business ties with the government, including Demirören News Agency, Hürriyet, and Milliyet, were highly visible in the app.

For example, in the "Turkey" section, the top news sources included Euronews, Hürriyet, state broadcaster TRT, the Education Ministry, the state-run Anadolu Agency (AA), Milliyet, Bloomberg HT, and BBC Turkish, while alternative and independent outlets were absent despite being actively followed by the account.

Search traffic

The most popular ones among the independent news sites, namely T24, Gazete Duvar, and BirGün, each attracted 15 million visitors in February, generating about 50 million pageviews, according to data from Similarweb, a web traffic analytics tool. BirGün ranked as the 93rd most-visited website in Turkey, followed by Gazete Duvar at 104th and T24 at 123rd.

In comparison, Hürriyet and Milliyet, two major conglomerate-owned news outlets, saw 87 million and 62 million visitors, respectively, with 352 million and 324 million pageviews last month. They ranked 12th and 15th among all websites in the country.

The impact of Google search traffic on website visibility is evident. The three independent outlets receive about as many visitors from direct visits as they do from organic search, which virtually refers to Google search traffic.

• Gazete Duvar had 5.3 million direct visitors and 6.1 million search visitors.
• T24 had 6.8 million direct visitors and 4.8 million search visitors.
• BirGün had 5 million direct visitors and 5.4 million search visitors.

By contrast, conglomerate-owned media benefit significantly more from Google search traffic:

• Hürriyet had 26.4 million direct visitors and 53.2 million search visitors.
• Milliyet had 19 million direct visitors and 38.9 million search visitors.

For state media, the ratio direct to search traffic is similar to that of the conglomerate media while their overall traffic is more similar to independent outlets:

• Anadolu Agency had 4.6 million direct visitors and 10.5 million search visitors.
• TRT Haber had 2.3 million direct visitors and 3.7 million search visitors. (VK)