German media's perception of Turkey.

• Author: Wilms, Stefan Sulaiman
• Position: COMMENTARY

Politics? It's not a Simple Equation

In a purely mechanical world-view, one would presume that the present media coverage of Turkey in Germany would be a mere reflection of the political climate or direct political will, influencing the different German media outlets. One the one hand (see below), a direct and overt attempt of imposing a political will goes against the grain of established relations between politics and the media. On the other hand, the presentation of Turkey in German media is even more counter-intuitive to the most recent state of relations between the German government (and its actions inside the EU) and the Turkish administration.

Concerning German-Turkish relations, German Chancellor Angela Merkel has transformed her stance and her policies since running against Gerhard Schroder, who was an outspoken supporter of Turkey, before she took office the first time in 2005. From Merkel's beginnings and her then-critical stance towards Turkey to her latest position as a dynamic force in the negotiations between Ankara and Brussels--there has been a remarkable transformation. Compared to Britain, France and some Central European EU member states, Merkel has isolated her politics from destructive ideological neoconservative trends. In this, Angela Merkel follows a tradition of disconnecting Germany's foreign policy from internal ideological debates.

If there were to be any deduction, explaining the present media coverage by looking at the political landscape, we would have to search elsewhere and for different factors. I would suggest two possible, rather lose, connections: One would be a remnant of the so-called "ethical foreign policy" preferred by the Schroder-Fischer coalition. This might be the source of a critical attitude on the part of the rather left-leaning branch of Germany's media with its strong focus on issues surrounding human rights and their perceived violations. Another strain--rather more focused on the ideological debate in Germany- involves using Turkey in a banal juxtaposition of "Christian Europe" vs. "Islamic orient." For those conservatives dissatisfied with Merkel's non-ideological approach, a predominantly negative coverage of Turkey might be considered a vote against Merkel herself.

No Unified Media Landscape in Germany

Several factors contribute to the common reporting of foreign affairs in Germany, and shed light on German media coverage of Turkey. One of them is the relatively close and generally stable relationship between Ankara and Berlin. Another factor, which has a growing significance, is the rising participation of journalists (as well as politicians) of Turkish ancestry in the debate itself.

[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]

The German media recipient, depending on his or her educational level and interest, will find a widespread variance in the quality of reporting -or the lack of it. This is the case in regard to media in general, and in its coverage of issues surrounding Turkey in particular. On the one hand, there is a sober, balanced and non-partial coverage of Turkish subjects available--especially when the respective newspaper, magazine or broadcaster relies upon the experience of experts and academics. But for some years, we have had to take into consideration the pendulousness of many media institutions in Germany. At a closer look, one finds an oscillation between negative and positive content. For example, a highly rhetorical editorial with the usual slogans about Turkey might be followed by a sober interview with one of Germany's leading experts on foreign affairs or a feature about the effects of globalization on Turkey's society.

In the past couple of years (sparked by the Taksim events, the rise of ISIL in the Levant, Turkey's exported conflicts, and the ongoing success of AK Party politics) a growing chorus of journalists and media outlets have emerged who demonstrate predominately negative attitudes towards the present Turkish government and political landscape. Alas, even a cursory glance over the available content of conservative (neoconservative, to be precise) and, ironically, left-liberal newspapers and magazines provides plenty of material. Some media outlets, foremost among them the daily Die Welt, are known for employing leading commentators on Turkish issues who have a veritable negative attitude toward Turkey and its present government.

One could, as some do, come to the conclusion that Germany's journalists and writers are merely a bunch of unfair demagogues and slanderers of Turkey. Which would be wrong, of course. But, it would be equally wrong to conclude in turn that the media perception is without influence. It has, of course, an impact on the wider public discourse and on the general public. To give a...