Findings of Research Called “The Perception of Alternative Media & Citizen Journalism by Professional Journalists” Are Announced

Media Research Association announced findings of research on “The Perception of Alternative Media & Citizen Journalism by Professional Journalists” which has been conducted in cooperation with the Guardian Foundation and with support of Norwegian Social Sciences Association.

According to the research, most of the journalists are not happy with their jobs and this is reflected in economic realities of the occupation. It is not an important measure whether the journalists work in mainstream or alternative media with regard to the awareness about citizen journalism.

The research was carried out between February-May 2018 by interviewing 306 journalists working in national or local media in İstanbul, Ankara, İzmir, Diyarbakır, Adana and Antalya. Their working period was 13,1 years on average. 40,8 % of them said they never had any formal education about journalism.

38,9% of the participants define their type of journalism as “objective”, 38,6% as “rights-based”, 33,3% as “impartial” and 17,6% as dissident.

The research includes a brief history of media in Turkey. After 1980 military coup, journalism in Turkey was under the influence of neoliberal politics. After the economic crisis in the early 2000’s and with AKP’s having the majority in the government, mainstream media weakened and liquidated. With AKP, a new type of media body has emerged: neoliberal-conservative. The research highlights that, along with the coalition between AKP and Gulen movement, media has become a powerful vehicle of the state. Between 2016-2018, almost 200 dissident media organizations were shut down and many journalists were sent to prison.

89,5% of the participants are constantly online and 92,2% of them use their smartphones to connect internet due to the research.