The Radio and Television Supreme Council (RTÜK), Turkey’s broadcasting and streaming regulator, has imposed maximum fines on several media outlets for their coverage of the detention of Istanbul Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu, the Deutsche Welle news website reported.
NOW TV, Tele 1, Halk TV and Sözcü TV were fined, while Halk TV and Sözcü TV were also given three program suspension penalties. The penalties were imposed under Law No. 6112 Article 8, which stipulates that broadcasts should not violate the principles of the rule of law, justice and impartiality.
RTÜK reasoned that the comments and analyses made in these programs went beyond the limits of freedom of expression and attempted to influence the judiciary, thereby undermining public trust in justice. Furthermore, calls for public protests could jeopardize national security, public order and public safety.
RTÜK board member Ilhan Taşcı denounced the penalties, saying RTÜK was biased and targeted media outlets critical of the government, particularly in the context of the İmamoğlu investigation. Taşcı said this was part of a broader political agenda and argued that without legal grounds, such actions were unlawful.
Another RTÜK member, Tuncay Keser, also opposed the fines, describing the decisions as violating laws regarding freedom of the press and freedom of expression and emphasized that the penalties served as proof of efforts to silence differing voices.
It is common for pro-opposition news channels in Turkey to face restrictions on their broadcasting through sanctions imposed by RTÜK, whose board members are appointed in proportion to the number of seats held by political parties in parliament, meaning that the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) currently dominates the agency.
Turkey remains one of the lowest-ranked countries in press freedom, placing 158th out of 180 nations in Reporters Without Borders’ World Press Freedom Index in 2024.
