The internet services of the German international broadcaster Deutsche Welle (DW) in all 32 programme languages have been blocked in Turkey.
Alongside this, according to DW, the websites of the international broadcaster Voice of America (VoA) have also been blocked.
DW says that in February this year the Turkish authority responsible for media control, RTÜK, called on DW and other international broadcasters to obtain a licence in Turkey. DW had not complied because licensing would have allowed the Turkish government to censor editorial content.
DW Director General Peter Limbourg said: “We had outlined in an extensive correspondence and even in a personal conversation with the chairman of the media control authority why DW could not apply for such a licence. For example, media licensed in Turkey are required to delete online content that RTÜK interprets as inappropriate. This is simply unacceptable for an independent broadcaster. DW will take legal action against the blocking that has now taken place”.
DW notes that news of the blocking was already spreading on social media in Turkey yesterday (Thursday, June 30) evening. There, users of DW’s offerings can find out about ways to circumvent censorship.
Meanwhile, Hurriyet reports the licensing is based on a regulation that came into effect in August 2019.
It adds that inspections of the watchdog will include movies, series on digital TV platforms such as Netflix, and social media platforms that deliver news on a regular basis. However, the regulation covers news broadcasts on YouTube, but not individual YouTube feeds.
