Turkish media tycoon takes over daily paper and TV station

Posted by Bertrand Pecquerie on May 12, 2005 at 5:37 PM

I think it is a good thing for the Turkish media landscape to have an alternative to the Dogan Group which owns Hurriyet, Milliyet and so many Turkish titles (and a predominant position in the media advertising market). According to Milliyet, "The Turkish daily Sabah and ATV have been sold to Turgay Ciner under an agreement he concluded with the Savings Deposit Insurance Fund (TMSF). We hope that it will lead to beneficial results. The agreement marks the beginning of a new era in the Turkish media industry. A new and real boss has emerged in the Turkish media and the media wars are about to come to an end. The Merkez Medya Group will no longer be subject to severe restrictions."

Last year I met the editors of Sabah and I was impressed by their wish to compete with Milliyet and to become the first quality newspaper of the country. The problem is that it doesn't exist in Turkey a serious audit bureau: figures given by newspapers are often inflated!

Source: Milliyet

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