Government takes control of Turkey’s most-watched news channel

Footage of the moment the feed was cut showed a live interview about a huge investment fund scandal suddenly switching to a classic film from 1973.(AFP) — Police raided Turkey’s most-watched news channel, Halk TV, early Wednesday, halting broadcasts and installing a government-appointed administrator in the latest move against pro-opposition media.They also raided homes, arresting 11 people — among them a journalist and seven family members of Halk TV Chairman Cafer Mahiroglu, who described it as “a dark day for Turkey.”“Police raid at Halk TV headquarters! A trustee has been appointed, broadcasts have been halted,” Halk TV wrote on X as its live news channel and YouTube broadcasts were cut during the predawn raids.It was the latest move against media viewed as critical of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and his government, coming two weeks after officials shut down the website and social media accounts of leading digital news outlet T24, citing “LGBT propaganda.”Prosecutors said they had issued arrest warrants for 17 people, 11 of whom had been detained as part of an investigation into Mahiroglu on suspicion of bribery, bid-rigging and money laundering. They confirmed that companies co-owned or managed by him had been seized and placed under the control of trustees.But Mahiroglu said the allegations were “baseless” and accused the government of using the judiciary for political ends.“The public’s right to information is being seized for political reasons,” he said in a video on X, confirming that seven family members had been detained, including his 70-year-old brother. Mahiroglu is also named in the warrants but lives abroad.“Using the judiciary as a weapon is the greatest harm inflicted on Turkey,” he said. “We will get our channel back.”‘Brutal blow’As dawn broke, staff members and journalists gathered in the pouring rain outside the headquarters, where hundreds of riot police stood behind shields, an AFP correspondent said.Staff members were later allowed inside.Footage of the moment the feed was cut showed a live interview about a huge investment fund scandal suddenly switching to a classic film from 1973.Amnesty International denounced the move as “a brutal blow to media freedom,” while Human Rights Watch said it was “a dramatic assault on free speech and media freedom.”‘Cannot be silenced’In Ankara, lawmakers from the opposition Yeni party covered their eyes with black ribbon and their mouths with black tape in a silent protest captured on camera by the Anka news agency.Veysel Ok, co-director of the media rights watchdog MLSA, called the intervention “one of the most significant steps in the government’s efforts to monopolise the flow of information.”“Halk TV’s position as the most-watched news channel also reveals the real target of this intervention: depriving the public of its right to access news from different sources,” he told AFP.Outside Halk TV’s Ankara branch, about 100 people gathered to protest, shouting, “A free press cannot be silenced!” an AFP correspondent said.“The police raid on Halk TV … is the strongest indication the judiciary and law enforcement have become tools to silence independent media,” Demet Aran, head of the Ankara branch of the Contemporary Journalists Association, told the crowd.Ozlem Akarsu Celik of the Journalists’ Association agreed that it was a problem for everyone.“Censorship is not just a problem for journalists, but for the entire society, it’s become a tool for consolidating the new regime,” she said.Living on borrowed timeYeni leader Ozgur Ozel said it was no coincidence that the raids occurred just before the defense began presenting its arguments in the sprawling corruption trial of jailed Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu, a key Erdoğan opponent.“Storming a TV channel with a police raid at dawn and appointing a trustee is something only dictators do,” he said.Halk TV has been repeatedly sanctioned by Turkey’s broadcasting regulator and was threatened with possible closure last year over its critical tone toward Erdoğan.In 2025, authorities also seized control of fellow pro-opposition TV channel Tele1, appointing a trustee to oversee broadcasts that were stripped of all hard news content. Although it still exists, its pro-opposition stance has been neutralized.Subscribe to our free newslettersOur weekly newsletter Closing Arguments offers the latest about ongoing trials, major litigation and rulings in courthouses around the U.S. and the world, while the monthly Under the Lights dishes the legal dirt from Hollywood, sports, Big Tech and the arts.Additional Reads