Turkey’s Radio and Television Supreme Council (RTÜK) imposed a fine on the Bursada Bugün news website following remarks made by anchor Aysın Komitgan, who expressed condolences on the death of Turkish-Islamic scholar Fethullah Gülen during a live broadcast, according to Turkish media sources.
Komitgan was detained by the police following the remarks and fired from her job, another demonstration of the extent to which Gülen, an arch-enemy of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, has been demonized by Turkish authorities.
Gülen was an Islamic scholar who had been living in the United States since 1999 and passed away at a hospital in Pennsylvania on October 20 at the age of 83. The movement he inspired is accused by the Turkish government and President Erdoğan of masterminding a failed coup on July 15, 2016 and is labeled a “terrorist organization.” The movement denies involvement in the coup attempt or any terrorist activity.
Komitgan’s words, “May his soul rest in peace,” were deemed a violation of the law, leading to a fine amounting to 5 percent of the channel’s monthly revenue. The decision was approved unanimously by RTÜK, which includes members appointed by opposition parties in the country.
Many pro-government circles in Turkey celebrated Gülen’s death, reflecting a decade-long campaign against him and his movement, particularly following the coup attempt. Several government officials who had previously praised Gülen for his teachings and the promotion of intercultural dialogue have now issued statements condemning him, promising that the fight against his movement would continue without concession.
RTÜK has also imposed fines on several other television channels for their coverage of a recent attack on Turkish Aerospace Industries (TAI), citing violations of a court-imposed broadcast ban and other alleged offenses.
On October 23, 2024, TAI’S facility in Ankara’s Kahramankazan district was targeted in a coordinated assault involving firearms and explosives. The attack resulted in five deaths and 22 injuries. The Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), designated as a terrorist organization by Turkey and its Western allies, claimed responsibility for the attack.
A court issued a broadcast ban to control the dissemination of information related to the incident.
RTÜK announced that channels including Akit TV, Beyaz TV, TV100, Kanal 3, Meltem TV, NTV, Show TV, Tele1, CNN Türk, TGRT Haber, Sözcü TV, Halk TV and Flash Haber violated the broadcast ban by airing content about the attack. Consequently, these broadcasters received the maximum administrative fine permitted under RTÜK regulations.
In addition to the sanctions related to the TAI attack, RTÜK penalized several channels for content in their daytime programming. TV8, Kanal D, NOW, Beyaz TV, Show TV, ATV and Star TV were fined at the highest level for violations that took place during their daytime shows. Furthermore, Halk TV, NOW, Bursada Bugün, Tele1, Sözcü TV, and Flash Haber faced heavy fines for breaches in their news programming.
RTÜK also took action to impose fines on Berat TV and Kanal Ege for the unauthorized marketing of herbal dietary supplements.
The Turkish government is accused of increasingly subverting control of Turkish media following the failed military coup in 2016. The government has closed down hundreds of media outlets and jailed dozens of critical journalists in a post-coup crackdown on the pretext of an anti-coup fight.
Journalists and others face the risk of losing their jobs, being subjected to judicial harassment and being jailed for the slightest criticism of the government.
Turkey, which has been suffering from a poor record of freedom of the press for years, ranks 158th among 180 countries in Reporters Without Borders’ World Press Freedom Index published on May 3, World Press Freedom Day.