Turkey ranked third among European Union candidate countries in press freedom violations in the first half of 2025, according to a new report by the Media Freedom Rapid Response (MFRR), cited by the Stockholm Center for Freedom (SCF). A total of 64 incidents affecting at least 157 journalists and media organizations were documented.
Nearly half of the violations (48.4 percent) were committed by courts and judicial authorities, followed by police and security forces (32.8 percent). More than half of the cases (59.4 percent) involved arrest, detention or imprisonment.
Crackdown after İmamoğlu’s detention
The pressure escalated after the March 19 detention of Istanbul Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s main political rival, on corruption and terrorism charges. Widely seen as politically motivated, the move triggered mass protests nationwide. Authorities responded with repression not only against demonstrators but also against the press.
A total of 19 violations against journalists covering İmamoğlu’s detention and the protests were recorded, mostly involving arrests, detentions and police violence. On March 21, police in Istanbul’s Saraçhane district assaulted at least nine reporters with tear gas, rubber bullets and pepper spray despite their press credentials. On March 23, further assaults injured several journalists, including BirGün reporters Ebru Çelik and Deniz Güngör, who were pepper-sprayed, beaten and hit with rubber bullets.
Censorship and RTÜK pressure
The crackdown extended to online platforms as authorities imposed restrictions on all major social media platforms in anticipation of public outrage. Meanwhile, Turkey’s broadcasting regulator RTÜK continued to target dissenting outlets with hefty fines and threats of license revocation.
On March 19, RTÜK’s chairman threatened to revoke licenses of TV channels that failed to broadcast only official government statements and that aired calls for protest following İmamoğlu’s detention.
Continued decline in press freedom
The MFRR, established in 2020 and co-funded by the European Commission, monitors and responds to violations of press and media freedom across the EU and candidate countries. Its report highlights the continued deterioration of press freedom in Turkey, with state institutions playing a central role in suppressing independent reporting.
Turkey, one of the world’s leading jailers of journalists, ranked 159th out of 180 countries in the 2025 World Press Freedom Index by Reporters Without Borders (RSF).
