Everyone Has a Media Outlet – But No One Has the Truth

When media stops serving as a bridge between justice and society, and instead becomes a mouthpiece for power, language loses its meaning. Truth is no longer discovered – it is manufactured in service of the ruling narrative. In Turkey, especially after the December 17/25, 2013 corruption investigations, labeling every detained individual as a “FETÖ member,” “coup plotter,” or “traitor” marked not only the collapse of journalism, but also a broader collapse of ethics and independent thought.

Texts that rely on such labels are not journalism. They are not even information or commentary. They are merely the expressions of minds that have surrendered their integrity to power. A real journalist does not accuse someone of a crime before a court has ruled. The line between allegation and conviction is thick – and that line is the backbone of the profession.

Labels kill thought. Calling people “conspirators,” “traitors,” “terrorists,” or “foreign agents” does not address what they have done – it only targets who they are. Journalism is not concerned with the identity of the subject, but with the verifiable facts. It speaks in evidence, not epithets.

This problem isn’t unique to Turkey. In post-Trump America, under Modi’s India, and in Putin’s Russia, we’ve seen the same pattern: labeling people first, rendering legal process unnecessary. George Orwell’s Newspeak in 1984 describes this perfectly – the manipulation of language to build absolute truths in favor of power.

In Turkey, this is not limited to pro-government media. It’s widespread across all ideological camps. Pro-government outlets criminalize individuals before courts do, reinforcing the ruling party’s narrative. Media aligned with the Gülen movement imitates the very language it once opposed, dismissing critics as “agents,” “troublemakers,” or “mad.” Similarly, leftist or Kurdish media often silence dissent within their own communities while vocally exposing injustice outside.

What these approaches share is a fundamental flaw: they assume journalism can be practiced through allegiance. But journalism is not rooted in identity. A journalist has no religion, no ethnicity, no party, no tribe. When a journalist picks up the pen, they shed those affiliations. They become a witness to truth – not a member of a group, but a servant of the public.

A real journalist does not ask, “Who will this story hurt?” or “Is now the right time?” These questions serve political convenience, not truth. Truth is not postponed. To delay it is to bury it. A journalist writes not what they’ve heard, but what they can prove. Not everything witnessed must be published, but everything published must be grounded in verifiable fact.

In this light, calling the police officers who worked on the December 17/25 corruption cases “coup plotters” or “conspirators” is both legally and morally wrong. There were no fabricated documents. The authenticity of the evidence was never seriously contested. What is debated is whether the investigation had political motives – which may be a political question, but not a legal one. In law, intention is not prosecuted – action is.

If journalists cannot criticize their own side, and can only attack the opposition, there is no press – only propaganda. If the slightest critique is labeled “treason,” “madness,” or “espionage,” what remains is not journalism but ideological policing. Truth is replaced by loyalty. Allegiance speaks, not evidence.

And this must be said clearly: YouTube channels filled with “I was there” storytelling and whispered gossip are not journalism. Who met with whom, what was implied, who hinted at what – these are not news stories. Journalism demands verification as much as it demands witness. Rumor is not knowledge. Narrative is not evidence. At best, this is infotainment. At worst, it is a distraction – taking people further from the truth, not closer.

Today, the greatest threat to journalism in Turkey is not censorship. It is those who wear the mask of journalism while serving their own ideological interests. Those who search for truth only within their own circles, who question only their enemies, who create spaces immune to criticism – all are complicit in the decay of public discourse.

Because in the end, they all mirror the very mindset they claim to oppose. Same words, same methods, same presentation – only a different banner. When journalists become loyal to identity rather than truth, they abandon the ethical foundations of their craft. If media is the public’s conscience, then those who blind it are not only betraying journalism – they are betraying collective memory itself.