Yeni Akit

**Yeni Akit** (New Agreement) is far-right, Islamist and social conservative Turkish daily newspaper. According to a report published by Hrant Dink Foundation, Yeni Akit is the newspaper with the most resorting hate speech in Turkey. Yeni Akit is also avid supporter of Justice and Development Party.

## History

Beklenen Vakit (Expected Time) founded on September 12, 1993, but later changed its name to Akit and became Anadolu'da Vakit on December 5, 2001. Anadolu'da Vakit (Time in Anatolia) had been sued for defamation by 312 generals for a 2003 editorial written by columnist Asım Yenihaber which criticised the military. Vakit lost the case, and was ordered to pay 1.8 million TL in 2010. Columnist Abdurrahman Dilipak had his house forcibly sold in 2009 to pay damages relating to a 2000 article.

After the death of Nuri Aykon, the privilege owner of Anadolu'da Vakit newspaper, which had been publishing for more than 9 years, on September 13, 2010, the legal heirs who had the naming rights of the newspaper hesitated whether the publication should continue or not. In this context, Vakit Editorial Board felt obliged to make a new decision.

The newspaper name changed to Yeni Akit. Yeni Akit's staff includes people such as former Welfare Party Rize deputy and mayor Şevki Yılmaz, Merve Kavakçı, who was not sworn in to the parliament because she wore a headscarf and lost her seat as a member of parliament, Hasan Aksay, one of the former ministers of state and Asım Yenihaber, who was sued for defamation against his article about 312 generals.

In 2015, Akit TV, the newspaper's broadcasting organ in the television sector, was founded.

## Hate Speech

Yeni Akit is known for resorting to hate speech against Kemalists, Jews, secularists, Alevis, Armenians, Greeks, atheists, LGBT people, socialists, communists, pan-Turkists, Idealists (Grey Wolves), and feminists.

### Anti-semitism

The puzzle in the Yeni Akit newspaper included Adolf Hitler as the 'celebrity in the picture', the coded word appeared as 'We Are Looking for You'. Yeni Akit is also denying The Holocaust. They believe that The Holocaust is a conspiracy made by Zionists.

Because of mine's owner son-in-law Yeni Akit blamed Jews for Soma mine disaster which caused 301 miners death. The newspaper criticized the mine's owner for having a Jewish son-in-law and "Zionist-dominated media" for distorting the story.

Yeni Akit columnist Faruk Cose called for Turkey's Jews to be taxed to pay for reconstructing buildings damaged in Gaza during Israel's recent Operation Protective Edge.

On 14 December 2019 Yeni Akit published an article containing Blood Libel.

### Homophobia

Yeni Akit is regularly describing LGBT people as perverts in their articles. They believe that LGBT corrupts morality and families. They also believe there is a Global LGBT Lobby and Kaos GL serving for them. They called LGBT people as "morality terrorists".

Yeni Akit newspaper, which described LGBT individuals as 'perverts' with its news in various periods, was sentenced to pay compensation as a result of the lawsuit filed by the Kaos GL association in 2012, on the grounds that 'expressions exceeding the limit of criticism and containing insults were used regarding people of different sexual orientations'.

Following the 2016 Orlando nightclub shooting, the newspaper published a headline calling the victims "deviant" or "perverted", which in turn was criticized by foreign media outlets.

Ebrar Karakurt is a lesbian Turkish volleyball. She plays for Turkish women's national volleyball team. Akit targeted Karakurt many times. Akit used "Instead of seeking treatment for her perverted emotions and regaining her health, Ebrar Karakurt, who tries to legitimize her immoral and anti-Islamic life in society and exposes her disgraceful relationships to the public, commits the same indignity on every match evening." words for Karakurt. Akit also referred to Karakurt as "Our national shame".

### Misogyny

Yeni Akit is known for censoring womans legs and arms in their news.

Yeni Akit blamed murder of Özgecan Aslan to "western lifestyle" and referred to the comments of pro-women's rights journalists such as Uğur Dündar as the main cause.

Akit published a news article titled 'That Woman Died' upon the death of screenwriter Meral Okay from cancer.

### Atheophobia

After 20 years old medicine student Enes Kara committed suicide because of pressure against him in congregation dormitory. Akit said that Kara committed suicide not because of pressure but because atheism.

### Anti-Kemalism

On January 14, 2015, an image of Atatürk, with make-up applied through image modification programs, with the Shield of David on his hat, and an image of him looking like he had been beaten, was shared on Yeni Akit's Facebook page. Thereupon, MHP and Grey Wolves members in the Fatih region went to protest in front of the Yeni Akit newspaper building. Police brutality was used against protesters.

### Denial of Sivas Massacre

Yeni Akit published a front page story on 23 July 2012 declaring the Sivas massacre a "19 Year Lie", claiming the victims had been killed by gunshots rather than fire on the basis of morgue photos it claimed were previously unpublished. The claims were rapidly disproven, and strongly condemned.

Akit also claims that Sivas Massacre was an inside job on another article. On the 21st anniversary of Sivas Massacre Akit claimed that murderers are innocent and they are corrupting in prison for nothing.

## Other Controversies

### Disinformation during Gezi Protests

Akit claimed that prostitution and group sex was common at Gezi park after 2 am. They based this claim on an "anonymous journalist who saw this happening with his own eyes and told it to someone else". Akit also claimed that there is posibility of protesters having group sex inside Dolmabahçe Mosque.

Akit accused supermarket chain Migros of delivering free supplies to the protestors at Gezi park. However, goods delivered to the park were bought by protestors through supermarket's internet shop.

On July 31, a news article titled "Here are the weapons of Gezi" was published in *Yeni Akit newspaper, and the weapons belonging to* the DHKP-C organization seized by the security forces were attributed to Gezi activists.

Yeni Akit newspaper regularly targeted Koç Group during the Gezi protests, and Rahmi Koç and Koç Holding filed 20 criminal cases and 7 compensation cases against Yeni Akit newspaper.

### Targeting of judges

Vakit had also been charged with encouraging the 2006 Turkish Council of State shooting of a judge, On February 13, 2006, Vakit newspaper published a headline saying "Here are those members" and printed pictures of the members of the department after the 2nd Chamber of the Council of State decided that it was not appropriate for a teacher to become a principal because she wore a headscarf outside. After the attack on the Council of State, when a copy of this newspaper was found in the attacker's vehicle, allegations were made that the attacker was motivated by this news. Thereupon, a lawsuit was filed against the newspaper for "targeting". As a result of the trial, the owner of the newspaper, Nuri Aykon, was fined 100 thousand YTL, and the responsible editor-in-chief, Harun Aksoy, was fined 11 thousand 572 YTL, on the grounds that they targeted the members of the Council of State for terrorist organizations.

### Targeting of journalists

In July 2012 over 200 prominent people signed a criminal complaint against Yeni Akit over its attacks on Armenian-origin journalist Ali Bayramoğlu.

In August the newspaper accused journalists Cengiz Çandar and Hasan Cemal of supporting the PKK.

In December 2012 Yeni Akit published a list of 60 journalists it claimed were "terrorists and criminals".

### Targeting of teachers

Yeni Akit newspaper reported on the photos shared on Facebook of 11 Antalya High School teachers drinking raki at the picnic they organized with their families, under the title "Immorality in High School". As a result of the lawsuit filed by the teachers, Yeni Akit newspaper was sentenced to pay 1,500 TL compensation to 5 teachers.

### Support to Al-Qaeda

In following his death in May 2011, *Yeni Akit* published a full page condolence in honor of Osama bin Laden.

### Support to Taliban

Before the fall of Kabul to the Taliban forces in 2021, a columnis of Yeni Akit claimed that Afghanistan would "rise from its ashes" with Taliban.