European Press’ Changing Attitude Towards Erdogan’s Victory.
Western Media Criticized for Misreporting Turkey’s Presidential Election
The presidential election held on June 24th, 2018, caused a great deal of controversy in Turkey, particularly in relation to the Western media’s stance on the matter. From the beginning of the process, the media attracted attention with reports that appeared to support the opposition. However, just before the second round, they changed their tune and began claiming that Erdogan was close to victory. After the results came in, they then declared that he was the clear victor.
The European press was roundly criticized for its biased reporting of the election process in Turkey, with The Economist receiving particular scrutiny. Initially supporting the opposition candidate, Kılıçdaroğlu, they quickly changed their stance when they saw the writing on the wall. This change of heart caused a great deal of anger in Turkey, and the magazine had to backtrack to avoid further controversy.
Le Monde, a popular French newspaper, was no better. For weeks, they ran stories claiming that the opposition was winning, only to have to backtrack when the results showed otherwise. They then fell back on the claim that Erdogan had been elected because of a desire for stability, while also stating that Kılıçdaroğlu “does not give confidence” and “Erdoğan knows how to give confidence” in one of their more memorable news stories.
The German press was also criticized, particularly for its coverage of the first round. Before the results were known, German state channel Tagesschau reported that “German politicians hope bilateral relations will make a new beginning without Erdoğan.” When the election results came in, they expressed surprise that Erdogan had done so well, given that he had been behind Kılıçdaroğlu in prelection polls. The German Bild newspaper was also guilty of biased reporting, referring to Kılıçdaroğlu as someone who made Erdogan “tremble.”
Overall, the Western media’s obsession with portraying Erdogan in a negative light damaged their credibility in the eyes of many Turks. Despite their predictions, he was democratically elected as President, showing that the Western media’s obsession with criticizing him was, ultimately, unfounded.
