Turkey: "Center for fighting disinformation" releases its first bulletin

As a senior official of the main opposition in Turkey criticized a controversial disinformation bill saying that "it remains uncertain who will decide which news reports are fake," the Directorate of Communications released its first "Disinformation Bulletin," T24's Asuman Aranca said.

The Parliamentary Group Deputy Chair of the Republican People's Party (CHP), Engin Altay, said on Monday, "it remains uncertain who will decide which news reports are fake," as he criticized a bill that has been submitted to vote in the Turkish Grand Assembly.

The Venice Commission called on Turkish authorities on Friday not to enact the bill, which orders imprisonment up to three years of those who spread "disinformation and fake news" both through media outlets and on social media.

In the midst of the ongoing debate on the bill, the Directorate of Communications under the Turkish Presidency, delivered the first electronic copy of its "Disinformation Bulletin" to a group of selected institutions and individuals, journalist Asuman Aranca reported on Monday.

Aranca cited İdris Kardas, the head of the Center for Fighting Disinformation, saying, "We launched this bulletin in order for the people to understand which news reports are true.

Fahrettin Altun, the head of the Directorate of Communications, earlier announced on 5 August the establishment of the center as he said:

"We have established a department within our Directorate of Communications to counter the systematic disinformation campaigns carried out against our country."

In Turkey, it is not only the disinformation bill that is being debated, but also the information provided by state agencies, including data on inflation and employment, which constitute the grounds for increases in the wages of the public and private sector workers.

The new Center for Fighting Disinformation and its bulletin are reminding of the "Ministry of Truth" in George Orwell's dystopian novel "1984," which decides what "truth" is in the fictional land of Oceania.