Media, uni cooperation discussed at Greek-Turkish forum in Istanbul
The prospects of creating channels of cooperation between the media and universities was debated at a Greek-Turkish forum held in Istanbul under the auspices of the Turkish Research Foundation (TAV) and the Institute of International Affairs of the American College of Greece, with the participation of media directors, journalists and academics from both countries.
Alexis Papachelas, the executive director of Kathimerini, spoke of the changes that have occurred in the media over the previous 20 years and emphasized the role that social networks frequently play in informing and misinforming the public.
He also proposed the exchange of young journalists between Greek and Turkish media outlets, as well as the availability of “open lines” between directors and other executives.
He stressed that the Turkish side should understand the reasons why Greeks see Turkey as a threat, as he expressed the need for the Turkish media to host more views of Greek academics and politicians, as the Greek media has already been doing for many years with Turkish academics and politicians.
Bora Bayraktar, the editorial director of the state TV network TRT World, discussed the importance of media cooperation and conveyed his concern about the significant change in information caused by social media and “self-proclaimed journalists” who “grab” news from the media and republish it as their own.
According to Bayraktar, there is not only bad news between Greece and Turkey, and they should focus on the positive agenda, such as sports, gastronomy and others.
