Not ‘pro-gov’t’ but ‘pro-CHP’: DMG’s links with CHP questioned

Nebil İlseven, the former CEO of Doğan Holding, was appointed to head the CHP’s İstanbul branch, while former Hürriyet daily chief columnist Oktay Ekşi was accepted into the party by CHP leader Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu in a brief ceremony during his parliamentary group meeting. Ekşi and İlseven are the latest concrete examples of a long-lasting flirtation between the CHP and the DMG, which has not been a secret at all. The fact that Ekşi also heads the Press Council and does not plan to quit his post also raises questions about the credibility of many columnists from the media group, those who accuse other media outlets of being under the government’s influence and not being independent.

The majority of columnists writing for the group’s newspapers such as Hürriyet, Milliyet, Vatan and Radikal are either ex-members of the CHP who had held critical positions in the party or openly express support for the party while carrying out a fervent anti-government campaign. Radikal daily columnist Altan Öymen, who took the helm of the CHP after former CHP leader Deniz Baykal’s failure in the 1999 elections and remained in the post until Baykal’s comeback in 2002; former CHP Secretary-General and current Radikal columnist Tarhan Erdem; current CHP Deputy Chairman Süheyl Batum, who had been writing columns for the Vatan daily since 2003 until he quit to run as a candidate for CHP Party Council (PM) membership in May of last year; Hurşit Güneş, who had been a columnist for the Milliyet daily until he was elected to the CHP PM in May of last year; and former Radikal daily columnist Binnaz Toprak, who was elected to the CHP’s PM as well, are some current and former leading figures from the DMG who had or have strong ties to the CHP.

Although it’s nothing deserving of condemnation for a journalist to join a political party, the fact that a group of journalists who carry out an anti-government campaign using the same discourse as the CHP and even officially join the party is the same group that accuses journalists from other newspapers of being “pro-government” puts them in a tight spot.

Alper Görmüş, a columnist for the liberal Taraf daily, stresses that it is not wrong for journalists to join a political party; however, he explains that it can be “disturbing” in some cases. “If a journalist does not adopt a critical discourse against a political party [either in government or the opposition] and later joins that party, that would be disturbing. Ekşi’s joining to the CHP is an example of that,” he says.

Ekşi is known for his highly critical columns against the ruling Justice and Development Party (AK Party). He was forced to resign from Hürriyet in October following the extremely negative reactions he received after he wrote a column in which he insulted the prime minister and state ministers. Ekşi referred to members of the government as having a “mindset willing to sell one’s own mother” -- the phrase in Turkish is highly offensive and implies one who is willing to sell one’s own mother as a prostitute -- when criticizing Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, Energy and Natural Resources Minister Taner Yıldız and Environment Minister Veysel Eroğlu over a government project to build a hydroelectric complex in the Black Sea province of Rize in his column published on Oct. 28. The journalist, on the other hand, wrote columns in explicit support of the CHP. Ekşi drew strong criticism when he and another Hürriyet columnist, Tufan Türenç, enthusiastically applauded Kılıçdaroğlu by standing on their chairs at the CHP general assembly in May when Kılıçdaroğlu ascended to the leadership of the CHP.

Görmüş questions an expression which has been frequently used in the Turkish media recently: “A journalist should be an opponent.” Underscoring that this motto is being used to imply opposition to the government only, Görmüş says those using this motto are failing to explain what kind of position a journalist should take with regards to parties that are not in the government. “A journalist should not be an opponent, but should be critical. A journalist should approach the policy of any party from this perspective. This is the correct attitude. In our media, those who refer to certain media outlets as being ‘pro-government’ in a humiliating sense assume that opposing every action of the government while approving that of the opposition is a skill,” he told Sunday’s Zaman.

The phrase “pro-government media” is often used by columnists and intellectuals who are staunch opponents of the AK Party government, mainly DMG journalists, in a bid to negate others’ success in journalism on the grounds that their reports are aimed at serving the government and being the AK Party’s “mouthpiece.” Those listed among the “pro-government” newspapers are Zaman, Taraf, Star, Bugün, Yeni Şafak and Vakit.

However, these newspapers are applauded by most observers for their coverage of historic developments in the country, including an ongoing trial of Ergenekon suspects, alleged military plots to assassinate prominent politicians and civilians and governmental efforts to root out terror.

Media Association (Medya Derneği) Chairman Salih Memecan is also highly critical of the contradiction of being pro-CHP while accusing others of being “pro-government.”

“It is normal for members of a media group to join a political party. However, lending explicit support to a certain party and at the same time accusing others of being ‘pro-government’ is shameful and has nothing to do with media ethics,” says Memecan.

According to him, many columnists from this media group assume that their political line is the “norm” and those who don’t hold to their line are labeled as “pro-government.” “I cannot understand that. When journalists express their views that run against this line they are accused of being ‘pro-government’,” he told Sunday’s Zaman

DMG’s role in ‘Baykal operation’

What lies behind the recently strengthened ties between the DMG and the main opposition party is in fact the strong media endorsement given to Kılıçdaroğlu in May of last year by the DMG, according to many observers.

In the wake of the emergence of a video clip that revealed CHP leader Deniz Baykal’s alleged affair with a CHP deputy in May, some newspapers, journalists and TV stations from the group that were once Baykal’s strongest allies embarked on a campaign urging him to resign from his position as party leader, saying this would be the most appropriate action to take, although the video was argued to be part of conspiracy. Baykal also said in the wake of the clip that the video was a fabricated one, highlighting that “a major media group” was behind it, which many interpreted to be the DMG.

After Baykal’s resignation was ensured, the same media outlets did not have any difficulty in pointing to Kılıçdaroğlu as the CHP’s possible new leader because they had already endorsed him as the politician most likely to take over from Baykal during his run for the İstanbul mayoralty in 2009’s local elections.

“This is crystal clear. The Doğan Media Group played an active role in toppling Baykal and bringing Kılıçdaroğlu to the CHP leadership. This is very clear,” Sabah daily columnist Emre Aköz says. Speaking to Sunday’s Zaman, Aköz explains that the media group has a major role in the project to boost the CHP’s popularity against the AK Party and is now doing its job. “While many are still trying to figure out what was going on after the emergence of Baykal’s video, the commentators from the Doğan Media Group had already begun calling on Baykal to resign. That is why we have been saying that ‘Baykal was taken from the office and Kılıçdaroğlu was appointed to replace him’,” he said.

Star daily columnist Ergun Babahan also acknowledges that the DMG played a major role in Kılıçdaroğlu’s ascension to the position of CHP leader and considers İlseven and Ekşi joining the party as an outcome of this strong support. According to Babahan, Kılıçdaroğlu is indebted to the DMG and is now paying back his debt. “You cannot say ‘no’ to someone who did such a favor for you if he tells you to appoint his CEO to the head of the İstanbul branch and to pave the way for his unemployed columnist to become a deputy. If you have come to the helm of the party not through your own efforts but because a media group wanted it so, you cannot prepare cadres of provincial branches and deputy lists without paying attention to the demands of that media group,” Babahan wrote in one of his recent columns.