Media mergers may help Erdogan’s government

Religious-leaning Ipek takes over anti-AKP broadcaster Kanalturk

A Turkish man reads a newspaper in Istanbul. A series of media acquisitions by pro-government companies could bode well for Turkey’s ruling AKP as it battles for survival in and out of court, experts say.

ANKARA (Reuters) – A series of media acquisitions by pro-government companies could bode well for Turkey’s ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) as it battles for survival in and out of court.

The AKP is fighting accusations of Islamist activities that could lead to it being closed down by Turkey’s top court.

Its leaders, including the prime minister and president, could be banned from politics for five years.

The political instability has hurt Turkish financial markets and could stall reforms needed for efforts by the officially secular but predominantly Muslim country of 70 million people to join the European Union.

The role of the media is becoming increasingly important as Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan and his party seek ways to ensure it remains in power even if it loses the court case.

The AKP is often criticized by the press in Turkey, a fast-growing media market, but the position of the pro-government media is slowly strengthening after several high-profile media acquisitions over the past few months.

“These deals ensure that the AK Party or a political bloc that emerges if the party is closed will still have a base in the media and that will make them quite powerful,” said Dogu Ergil, an expert on Turkish politics.

Erdogan has frequently accused much of the Turkish media of waging an unfair campaign even though his party won 47 percent of the popular vote in a parliamentary election last year. He has launched several libel cases against publications.

Turkey’s dominant media group, Dogan Yayin, controlled by the Dogan family, has turned away from the government, frustrated by what it says is the slow pace of EU reforms and a drive to boost religion in public life.

On Monday Akin Ipek, the owner of Koza Ipek Holding, purchased anti-government broadcaster Kanalturk for $30 million. Ipek already owns religious-leaning newspaper Bugun.

The Kanalturk deal came as a shock to Turkish media, split into pro- and anti-government camps since the Islamist-rooted AKP first swept to power in 2002.

“It’s like a Turkish tragic comedy... selling out to the enemy,” said Semih Idiz, a leading Turkish commentator who writes for Milliyet, a liberal newspaper owned by Dogan.

Under the previous owner, Kanalturk helped organize large secular rallies to try to block the appointment of Abdullah Gul, a former foreign minister and AKP member, as president.

Gul, who was once an Islamist, won the post only after the AK Party was forced to call an early parliamentary election.

The Kanalturk sale was completed a month after Calik Group, a fast-growing conglomerate with close ties to Erdogan, took control of Turkey’s second-largest media group, ATV-Sabah, for $1.1 billion in cash.

The ATV-Sabah purchase, stemming from the state’s seizure of the group last year following financial irregularities, also raised eyebrows as it was financed by state-owned banks and a media arm of the state-owned Qatar Investment Authority.

The general manager of Calik Holding is Erdogan’s 29-year-old son-in-law, Barak Albayrak. Barak is not related to the fast-growing Turkish family-run Albayrak conglomerate that owns the pro-government Yeni Safak daily.

A few more media assets are up for grabs. TMSF state fund is holding a tender for entertainment channel Kral TV in June. The Albayrak conglomerate has expressed an interest in Kral.

“These pro-government groups are not necessarily AK Party ones but owe their economic ascendance to the AKP and want to help extend their influence over the public by buying Kanalturk,” said Ankara-based Ergil.

Though predominantly Muslim, Turkey was founded as a secular state in 1923 and a powerful elite of military, judicial and academic officials see themselves as custodians of secularism.

The pro-Western business elite has also long played a key role.

Now a shift in society is bringing to the fore a rising class of religious professionals, from where the AK Party gleans much of its support, to the alarm of the old guard.

“These media groups represent a large chunk of Turkish society that is (religiously) conservative. They are being criticized because some rivals don’t want to lose power of the media,” said a senior AKP member, who declined to be named.