Reporting What’s Going on at the Neighbors from a Distance: Turkish News Channels’ Breaking News Coverage of the 2018 Missile Strikes against Syria

Abstract

The research variables of this study are “Turkish journalists’ role preferences” and “Turkish television channels’ use of sources” during the first eight hours of breaking news coverage of the 2018 missile strikes against Syria. The researcher employs content analysis to answer mainly two questions: “Did Turkish journalists perform roles other than “traditional disseminator?” and “Was their reporting balanced insofar as conflicting perspectives were treated equitably?” The study identifies that Turkish journalists preferred the “traditional journalist” role when reporting from Turkey but that of “social commentator” when reporting from abroad. Deviations from traditional journalism consisted of “reporting rumors,” “citing anonymous sources,” and “making personal references.” On the other hand, there was a lack of diversity and balance in the use of sources. For instance, no broadcast journalists reflected the opinions of Syrian refugees living in Turkey, and very few reported from anywhere near the scene of the action. Thus coverage was inadequate insofar as reporters largely focused on one side’s perspective.

Keywords

• violations of journalism conventions
• Turkish news channels
• breaking news
• sources
• international news

Komşuda Olup Bitene Uzaktan Bakmak: Türkiye’deki Haber Kanallarının 2018 Suriye Bombardımanında Sergiledikleri Son Dakika Haberciliği

Abstract

Bu çalışma, 2018 Suriye Bombardımanı çerçevesinde Türk haber kanallarının ilk sekiz saatte sergiledikleri son dakika haberciliğini, tercih edilen “gazetecilik rolleri” ve kanalların “kaynak kullanımı” açısından irdelemektedir. İçerik analizi yaklaşımının kullanıldığı çalışmada araştırmacı başlıca şu iki sorunun yanıtlarını aramaktadır: “Yayıncılar ‘haberi veren/dağıtan geleneksel gazeteci’ rolünün dışına çıkmışlar mıdır?” ve “Karşıt görüşlerin eşit bir biçimde yer aldığı dengeli bir yayın politikası gözetilmiş midir?” Araştırmada Türkiye’den yayın yapan gazetecilerin “geleneksel gazeteci” rolünü tercih ettikleri; ancak yurtdışından yayına bağlanan Türk gazetecilerin ise daha çok “toplumsal yorumcu” rolünü üstlendikleri tespit edilmiştir. Ayrıca yayın esnasında “söylenti haber,” “kaynağı belli olmayan haber kullanımı” ve “kişisel imalarda bulunmak” gibi gazetecilik normlarından sapmalar kaydedilmiştir. Öte yandan kaynak kullanımında denge ve çeşitliliğin gözetilmediği saptanmıştır. Örneğin olayın geçtiği yerden yok denecek kadar az yayın yapılmış; Türkiye’de yaşayan Suriyeli mültecilere ise hiç başvurulmamıştır. Yayıncıların olayı tek taraflı bir biçimde sunarak doyurucu bir yayın yapmaktan uzak kaldıkları gözlemlenmiştir.

Keywords

• ulusal haber kanalları
• son dakika haberleri
• kaynak kullanımı
• gazetecilik normlarından sapmalar
• uluslararası haber

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