Presidential elections of Fenerbahce S.C. within the context of public opinion construction of the press

The presidential elections held on 2-3 June 2018 at Fenerbahçe Sports Club kept the country agenda busy for a long time. Aziz Yıldırım, who has been the president of Fenerbahçe Sports Club for 20 years, and Ali Koç, who has served in the board of directors of Fenerbahçe in the past, run for the elections to be the president of the club. Elections have been a part of history after 21350 congress members have casted their votes. Several articles and columns have been written about the presidential election. Hence, it is thought that the press is a part of the presidential rally and may affect the public opinion in terms of candidates. The role played by the press in the presidential elections, how the candidates found their place in the press have been examined in detail. Content analysis has been applied to news and columns regarding Fenerbahçe's presidential elections in Sabah, Sözcü, Hürriyet, Fotomaç, AMK and Fanatik newspapers. It is concluded that the published news texts are presented objectively to the reader. However, in the columns there were mostly critical or supportive views. In addition, in-depth interviews were conducted with journalists and columnists who had written articles or columns about the presidential elections. Most reporters and columnists interviewed have stated that the social media was decisive in this process and the press did not play an important role. Furthermore, the fact that presidential candidates did not use the printed media in an effective manner has also come to the forefront.