ISTANBUL
A press watchdog in Istanbul released a report on Tuesday summarizing major events in the Turkish media.
Entitled “Difficult Year,” the 102-page briefing compiles main developments in Turkish media, such as broadcasting blackouts on several issues – including that of Turkish citizens abducted earlier this year in Iraq by the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant.
President of the Istanbul-based Press Council Solidarity and Development Foundation, Pinar Turenc, said that it is impossible to talk about a “free press” in Turkey as “prosecution of journalists hangs over our heads like a sword of Damocles.”
“Peoples’ right to get information is sacred and it is essential,” Turenc said.
European Union officials have criticized Turkey – a membership candidate – for going “against European values” after detention of some media figures among other suspects in Turkey earlier this month.
President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has rejected the EU accusations, stating that Turkey has the freest press in the world.
www.aa.com.tr/en
