Digital Publishing Questions in Turkey: Master Guide

Emergency: what has happened?

A — Copyright and quotation (Law No. 5846)

By its nature journalism makes use of content produced by others. The limits are narrower than supposed.

The limits of quotation

• Is quoting news from another site permitted?
• How much text can be used in a news quotation?
• Can an opinion column be quoted without permission?
• If I credit the source, is permission still needed?
• How are sources cited in a news report?
• Is publishing agency copy without permission an offence?
• The penalty for republishing without credit

Images, video and music

• Can a photograph from social media be used in a news report?
• Can an Instagram post be embedded in a news report?
• Is using a screenshot copyright infringement?
• Are free stock image sites safe?
• Is using a short clip from a video permitted?
• Is a licence needed to use music?

Artificial intelligence and damages

• Can an AI-generated image be used in a news report?
• Who is liable for a news item written by AI?
• How much is paid in damages for copyright infringement?

B — Internet liability (Law No. 5651)

Removal requests, access blocking and liability arising from reader comments are gathered under this heading.

Removal and blocking

• A removal request has arrived about my site — what should I do?
• What happens if I refuse a removal request?
• Within how many hours is an access-blocking decision implemented?
• What does URL-based blocking mean?
• What is done if the whole site is blocked?
• What are catalogue offences?
• What is the right to be forgotten and how is it used?

Comments and status

• Is the site liable for reader comments?
• Is comment moderation compulsory?
• Is a news site a hosting provider or a content provider?
• Is it compulsory to keep identity and contact information on the site?
• Who do the social network provider obligations cover?

C — Personal data (Law No. 6698)

A news site both processes personal data in its reporting and collects data from its readers; the two are subject to different regimes.

• Is journalistic activity exempt from data protection law?
• Is using personal data in a news report a breach?
• Must a news site register with VERBİS?
• Is a privacy notice required when collecting reader data?
• Is cookie consent compulsory?
• Is consent required to send a newsletter?
• How is a personal data breach notified?

D — Advertising and promotion

Sponsored content is a revenue item; unlabelled, it is a matter for sanction.

• How must an advertorial be labelled?
• Is there a penalty for surreptitious advertising?
• How is an influencer partnership disclosed in a news report?
• Does the Advertising Board audit news sites?

E — Deepfakes and manipulated content

• What are the consequences of publishing deepfake content?

F — Freedom of information (Law No. 4982)

The sourcing side of journalism: requesting documents from public bodies.

• Within how many days is a freedom of information request answered?
• My request was refused — what should I do?
• Which information falls outside the scope of freedom of information?
• Is requesting a document from a public body chargeable?

Put three things in writing from the outset

Most of these 44 questions never arise if there is a written policy in place beforehand:

• Quotation and source policy. What proportion may be quoted, how the attribution is written, how agency content is marked.
• Comment policy. Whether there is pre-moderation, which comments are deleted, how complaints are handled.
• Removal request flow. Recording the request, classification, assessment, decision, implementation, notification — six steps.

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