Turkey’s media watchdog RTÜK fines broadcasters over daytime TV shows

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The Radio and Television Supreme Council (RTÜK) held its first meeting today (February 4) after President and ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) Chair Recep Tayyip Erdoğan issued a Presidential circular regarding the "Press and Broadcasting Activities" in Turkey.

Media watchdog RTÜK has fined a series of TV broadcasters, namely ATV, FOX, SHOW TV, Beyaz TV, STAR, Halk TV and TELE 1.

Pro-government TV channel ATV has also been fined by RTÜK over a daytime show presented by Esra Erol. Amid public backlash at Erol and her program, where she exposed an 18-year-old young woman against her will and scolded her on live TV, RTÜK has fined ATV by 1 percent on the grounds that the related broadcast violated the broadcasting principles.

İlhan Taşçı, a member of RTÜK from the main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP), has made a statement on his social media account and argued that the fine on ATV is "for the show only."

Recalling that "there are record-high numbers of complaints against the related program" and "the RTÜK imposes the severest fines, even a blackout, without blinking an eye to silence critical voices," Taşçı has said that RTÜK has "fudged the issue with a fine given on the lowest limit."

According to Taşçı, ATV should have been sanctioned for "violating national and spiritual values", but it has been fined for "humiliation" as the former would have required a fine on a higher limit.

RTÜK has also imposed administrative fines on FOX TV, Show TV, Beyaz TV and Star TV over their daytime TV shows.

Halk TV, TELE 1 news channels fined as well

The media authority has also fined Halk TV over Levent Gültekin's remarks during the "İki Yorum" (Two Comments) program.

Arguing that a police officer was pointed as a target during the program, RTÜK has imposed an administrative fine on the pro-opposition broadcaster over Gületekin's remarks, "So impertinent. Look at him. This is not what being a police officer is about. This means ganging up."

TELE 1, another pro-opposition channel, has also been fined by RTÜK.

The media watchdog has imposed an administrative fine on TELE 1 over the remarks of Merdan Yanardağ, who said during the "18 Dakika" (18 Minutes) program: "They hid the ones who burned Turkey's soldiers alive, they even hid the ones who hid [them] alive. Just so that the name of an Islamist terrorist organization is not mentioned... Muslims establish terrorist organiations as well and they kill Turkish soldiers in terrorist organizations. The Islamist terror... They hid Islamist terror for years..." (HA/SD)