During the "Türkiye's Savings are 30 Years Old" event, which was hosted at the Rami Library to commemorate the 30th anniversary of the founding of Yeni Şafak newspaper, Presidency's Director of Communications Fahrettin Altun stated that the publication's unbiased journalism and news coverage have earned it an exceptional place in the annals of Turkish journalism.
Altun stated that the newspaper's news exposes what is wanted to be hidden, what is covered up, what is not wanted to be shown, and the truths, and that it is the voice of the oppressed and victimised who are silenced, marginalised, and disregarded.
Director of Communications Altun described Yeni Şafak as a school of journalism, reporting and thought.
Director of Communications Altun recalled that the newspaper began publishing with the headline "Türkiye's Future is Bright," adding, "Today, it is easy to say this sentence. We are all confident that Türkiye has a bright future ahead of it. However, the headline 'Türkiye's future is bright' was published by the Yeni Şafak newspaper during dark and difficult days. In fact, shortly after this headline, Türkiye experienced the February 28 persecution. In addition to being an assault on national values, February 28 was also the designation of a shady operation and a political engineering scheme that sought to erase the local and national aspects of society from history. It was a coup attempt to permanently integrate Türkiye into the Western colonial order and the Westernist dependence system. The goal was to isolate Türkiye and imprison it in its own contradictions for eternity."
Director of Communications Altun said that today's Türkiye is a country where students no longer have to fear being turned away from university gates because of headscarves and where everyone can freely study or teach regardless of their attire and beliefs.
"Today's Türkiye is a country where the juntas cannot tamper with democratic will and where coup plotters who received support from domestic and foreign powers were thwarted by our nation. Today's Türkiye is a country that regards solidarity with the oppressed and victimised as its preeminent historical, humanitarian, and conscientious duty, wherever they may be in the world. Today's Türkiye is a country that is a playmaker not only within its own borders but also on a regional and global scale, a country that disrupts the games that are being played against it and takes an active role in problem-solving and crisis resolution. Today's Türkiye, which is celebrating its centenary with pride and dignity, is a country that has accomplished scientific feats that some circles could never have imagined, as well as a country that started travelling into space."
Noting that they see pluralism in the field of media as well as pluralism in the political arena in Türkiye today, Director of Communications Altun stated, "Unfortunately, for years in Türkiye, Western elites have tried to expel a large segment of society from the media, just as they have tried to expel them from the political and public spheres. In this regard, the media has evolved into a tool for indoctrinating Western ideology and social order. It became institutionalised as an instrument of top-down modernization. However, as Türkiye has liberalised and the democratic space has expanded, different segments of society have become visible in the public sphere. Thus, the media field has also diversified, strengthened and expanded."
"Türkiye is the country most exposed to hybrid threats generated through new media tools"
"Indeed, nationalisation in the fields of press, media and communication gained institutional ground after 2002. Certainly, similar to how publications such as Büyük Doğu facilitated the exchange of ideas and values during challenging periods, Yeni Şafak effectively embodied this value chain amidst the arduous circumstances of the 1990s. Without these efforts, we would not be able to breathe in today's media ecosystem. Had it not been for these efforts, the Western domination of the media would have continued and our nation would have been manipulated with great ease in line with the expectations of the Western colonial order. Praise be to Allah that they do not have such ease. But that doesn't mean they are standing still. Whatever they cannot achieve through traditional media tools, they are trying to achieve through the new media order and digital media tools. They are waging a war of attrition against Türkiye using hybrid threats and new media tools and strategies. Türkiye is the country most exposed to hybrid threats generated through new media tools in the world. In concrete studies conducted by various institutions and organisations, especially Oxford University, Türkiye is classified as the country most exposed to disinformation in the world today."
Emphasising that there is a power struggle behind this, Altun said, "We must state clearly and unequivocally that this is a worldwide political engineering endeavour. What is it? To reintegrate Türkiye into the Western dependency system. To make her a dependent actor again, following the Western colonial order, and to force her to give up her assertions.
Noting that Türkiye has been exposed to many hybrid attacks and coups in this context in the last 10 years, Director of Communications Altun said, "Türkiye has faced many attacks, from the Gezi uprising to the July 15 invasion attempt disguised as a coup, from economic attacks to terrorist attacks. This is now accompanied by systematic disinformation campaigns. This is precisely why we devote a significant part of our efforts to combating disinformation. Systematic disinformation campaigns transcend the boundaries of the media, communication, and the press. We are dealing with a threat that affects us from a wider political and strategic standpoint. We therefore regard the fight against disinformation as an issue of national security. We recognise this struggle not only as a national struggle but also as a global one."
Director of Communications Altun stated that they counter the disinformation campaigns that accompany Israel's crimes precisely for this reason, adding that they have effectively eliminated such campaigns globally, as well as in Türkiye, by devoting a substantial amount of effort to this end.
Highlighting the great significance they attach to the efforts of powerful, institutional and traditional media outlets such as Yeni Şafak in the fight against disinformation, Altun said, "Because we are engaged in a common struggle. This struggle is, in the most literal sense, a struggle for truth. Because we are in dire need of truth as a fundamental value in this current day. In this era of widespread lies and attempts to devalue the truth, the struggle for truth is the most honourable endeavour. Critical and strategic components in this struggle for truth are the timely and effective distribution of precise news employing suitable methodologies, as well as the advocacy of journalism as a profession on an international scale."
"We are confronted with brand new challenges"
Director of Communications Altun pointed out that this field is in a constant state of progress and that they are faced with new hybrid threats on a regular basis: "We are confronted with brand new challenges, particularly in the wake of artificial intelligence technologies. Effectively managing the field of artificial intelligence is crucial in this respect. At this time, the issue of internationalisation is an additional challenge for well-established media outlets in Türkiye. Additionally, we are conscious of Yeni Şafak's formidable efforts in this regard. We further offer them our congratulations for this. As Türkiye, we are presently engaged in a struggle for global justice under the leadership of our President, and the backing of the media is of the utmost importance in this struggle."
Director of Communications Altun remarked that Türkiye's long-running struggle for democratisation against tutelage was duly supported by Yeni Şafak, who had taken the right stance.
"The struggle our President carries out under the motto "The world is bigger than five" is one that will yield fruitful outcomes on the international arena"
Noting how Türkiye is at the forefront of the global struggle for justice at this time, Director of Communications Altun further stated, "The struggle our President carries out under the motto "The world is bigger than five" is one that will yield fruitful outcomes on the international arena. These are the institutions—local and national media outlets, such as the Yeni Şafak newspaper—that must cultivate internationalisation capacities in order to contribute to Türkiye's global struggle for justice. We will not permit the disinformation regime to prevail over the truth; therefore, we will work in tandem with you all and engage in collective collaboration."
