A research on Syrian asylum seekers and the Syrian media in Türkiye

As a result of the popular uprisings that began in Syria in 2011 against the government, Syrians fled their country in masses and migrated to neighboring countries. Türkiye's open door policy allowed Syrians fleeing their country to seek asylum in Türkiye, and Turkish society welcomed millions of Syrians with open arms. During this process, media outlets emerged that covered events that the Syrian government's official media did not cover or allow to be published. Working in Syria posed a great danger to their employees due to their opposition to the Syrian government. Over time, as the conflict in Syria intensified, some media outlets were forced to move out of Syria. Many of these outlets moved to Türkiye, established "temporary" offices, and continued to report on events in Syria there. In addition, Syrian asylum seekers in Türkiye established their own media outlets. These media outlets aim to provide information to Syrian asylum seekers in Türkiye about the conflict and current conditions in Syria, as well as to assist them with the legal, economic and social problems they face in Türkiye. In the last two years, some Syrian media outlets in Türkiye have included content related to Türkiye and especially the Turkish society. In addition, some media outlets have launched social media programs and prepared field reports on the Turkish society. Some of this content is presented in Turkish. Using field observation techniques, this thesis provides up-to-date information on the number, distribution, establishment (and closing) dates, administrative, financial and operational structures of Syrian media outlets. At the same time, three leading Syrian media outlets in Türkiye - Enab Baladi newspaper, Radio Rozana and Syria TV - have been evaluated and their content related to Türkiye and the Turkish society has been analyzed. In general, it has been observed that the content of Syrian media outlets in Türkiye is affected by their sources of funding. More specifically, Enab Baladi has constantly included events related to Türkiye while reporting on events in Syria, especially by covering developments related to "conflict-free zones" and "safe zones". In contrast, Radio Rozana has focused on helping Syrian asylum seekers in Türkiye regarding their rights and responsibilities. Syria TV, on the other hand, covered events related to Turkish society more directly and comprehensively, focusing particularly on different political discourses regarding asylum seekers and their effects on local society.