Presentation of the Stray Dog Attack in the National Press in the Context of Animal Rights and Municipal Responsibilities: The Example of Hürriyet, Cumhuriyet and T24
Öz
The living conditions of stray dogs, which have become a social issue in Turkey, and the attacks that threaten human health resulting from these conditions have frequently been on the agenda in recent years. The fact that stray dogs live on the streets with people, and the responsibilities imposed on municipalities regarding care and rehabilitation by the Animal Protection Law No. 5199, also create an environment that will cause stray dogs to attack people. While these attacks create fear among citizens, it has also been observed that they result in injuries and even deaths. News in the press also opens up a public discussion area regarding the issue in question through recurring incidents. The health problems, injuries and fear experienced by an adult or child attacked by stray dogs are covered in traditional and digital media for days, and the degree of social reaction increases if the incident results in severe injuries or death. However, this discussion environment, rather than providing solutions aimed at reaching a broad consensus on the solution of the problem, provides ground for conflicts between citizens, municipalities, the central government and animal rights advocates. The issue of stray dogs, which is remembered again with the news coverage of the incidents, often brings the parties together in two poles: Those who advocate that stray dogs should be collected and cared for in shelters, and those who argue that forcing them into poor shelter conditions is torture for dogs and argue that cities are also places for stray dogs. While those in the first group support the idea that stray dogs cannot live freely in places with a dense human population, those in the second group hold municipalities responsible for the attacks, which do not deal with the rehabilitation and neutering of animals. These incidents, which have long been experienced as a social problem, cannot be taken out of the conflict area and into a healthy discussion platform due to the preference of the written and visual media in framing the incidents. In the solution of a problem between humans and animals, the press is of great importance in ensuring that the authorities, citizens and relevant civil society organizations perceive the problem from all aspects so that a regulation that will respect the rights of both parties can be made and implemented. The way to make sound decisions in solving social problems is through a non-polarized, healthy discussion environment; and the establishment of this environment is through the news media that brings the problem to the public's knowledge and agenda. A press that focuses only on human victimization forces citizens to make decisions that limit the living space and rights of animals on those in power. Therefore, those in power feel obliged to make decisions that will even disregard the right to life of animals due to stray dog attacks on citizens. If this happens, an inevitable conflict begins between associations and volunteers defending animal rights and those in power. How the press frames and presents stray dog attacks is quite effective in turning the problem into a new source of social conflict instead of finding a healthy solution. Written and visual media have the power to direct the attitude of the reader/viewer on the topics they cover. In this study, a sample of news items about stray dog attacks published in Hürriyet and Cumhuriyet newspapers and on the T24 news site was examined through content analysis. In the analysis, the headline, spot and body of the news items were evaluated separately and divided into categories. These categories were developed to reveal whether different sections of the news highlighted the incident, the violation of the law, human victimization or animal victimization. Since one way to frame the news is through whose discourse is circulated in the news, it was also determined whose testimonies were sought in the news texts. For this purpose, the categories of “victim/relative of the victim”, “eyewitnesses”, “local government”, “association, volunteer”, and “no witness” were developed and an attempt was made to determine which of these appeared most frequently as witnesses in the news. As a result of the research, a press image emerged that prioritized human victimization and ignored the victimization of stray dogs, did not associate the attacks with municipalities that did not fulfill their legal responsibilities, and did not seek the testimonies of associations and volunteers related to animal rights. In addition, it was observed that the testimonies of the victims and their relatives were predominantly sought in the news stories in question, or that no witnesses were needed. The most important actors (municipalities, associations, and volunteers) related to a social problem in solving that problem were excluded from the event narrative.
Anahtar Kelimeler
Sokak Köpekleri Saldırısının Hayvan Hakları ve Belediye Sorumlulukları Bağlamında Ulusal Basında Sunumu: Hürriyet, Cumhuriyet ve T24 Örneği
Öz
Türkiye’deki toplumsal meseleler arasına yerleşen sokak köpeklerinin yaşam koşulları ve bu koşullardan kaynaklanan, insan sağlığını tehdit eden saldırılar son yıllarda sıklıkla gündeme gelmektedir. Sokak köpeklerinin sokaklarda insanlarla birlikte yaşıyor olması, buna karşılık 5199 sayılı Hayvanları Koruma Kanunu’yla belediyelere bakım ve rehabilitasyon konusunda yüklenen sorumlulukların aksaması sahipsiz köpeklerin insanlara saldırmasına sebep olacak ortamı da hazırlamaktadır. Bu saldırılar yurttaşlar arasında korku yaratırken, yaralanma hatta ölümle sonuçlandığı da görülmektedir. Basındaki haberler tekrarlayan olaylar üzerinden söz konusu meseleye ilişkin kamusal bir tartışma alanı da açmaktadır. Fakat bu tartışma ortamı sorunu çözmeye yönelik yapıcı önerilerden ziyade vatandaşlar, belediyeler, merkezi yönetim ve hayvan hakları savunucuları arasında yeni çatışmalar üretmekte, var olan çatışmaları da sürdürmektedir. İnsanlar ve hayvanlar arasındaki bir sorunun çözümünde, her iki tarafın haklarını da gözetecek bir düzenlemenin yapılıp uygulamaya konulması için iktidar sahiplerinin, yurttaşların ve konuyla ilgili sivil toplum kuruluşlarının sorunu her yönüyle algılamasında basının önemi büyüktür. Sorunun sağlıklı bir çözüme kavuşturulması yerine yeni bir toplumsal çatışma kaynağı haline gelmesinde, sokak köpeği saldırılarını konu edinen basının bu olayları nasıl çerçeveleyip sunduğu oldukça etkilidir. Yazılı ve görsel medya, ele aldığı konular üzerinde okurun/izleyicinin tutumunu yönlendirebilecek güçtedir. Bu çalışmada Hürriyet ve Cumhuriyet gazetelerinin internet sitelerinde ve T24 haber sitesinde sokak köpeği saldırılarıyla ilgili çıkan haberlerden alınan örneklem içerik çözümlemesiyle incelenmiştir. Araştırmanın sonucunda insan mağduriyetini önceleyip sahipsiz köpeklerin mağduriyetini göz ardı eden, yaşanan saldırıları yasal sorumluluklarını yerine getirmeyen belediyelerle ilişkilendirmeyen ve hayvan haklarıyla ilgili dernek ve gönüllülerin tanıklığına başvurmaktan uzak bir basın görüntüsü ortaya çıkmıştır.
Anahtar Kelimeler
