Reproduction of lynch culture in new media in Turkey

In this study, Turkey's lynching culture is examined and how it is reproduced through new media is explained. While the number of studies on violence in our country is quite high, it has been observed that studies on lynching are insufficient. The lynchings that take place in Turkey are experienced both physically on the streets and virtually on social media channels. In the first part of the study, the conceptual framework of the lynching was drawn. The relationship between audience psychology and lynching events is explained. In this context, the connection between the feeling of violence and aggression and lynching constitutes an important part of the study. Many factors are thought to be effective in the occurrence of lynching events. In the section on sources of lynching, the relationship between lynching and nationalist ideology is examined, and the effect of political discourses on the lynching events is explained with examples. The phenomenon of forms of violence, which constitutes an important part of the study, has also been examined through masculinity and psychological factors. The factors that cause lynching events in the society have been discussed in many ways. The second part of the study consists of research on the transformation of the media and the place of hate speech in the media. In this context, the transformation of the media sector and its process in Turkey are mentioned. The concept of virtual culture formed through new media is explained. In the third and last part of the study, findings and evaluations are given. The comments and interactions of the news reflected in the press on social media were examined. Examples of lynchings that took place in the social media were included, and the examples were analyzed by qualitative analysis and critical discourse analysis method. As a result of the study, many factors that are effective in the process of lynching in Turkey are explained and the measures that can be taken to prevent lynching, which is a social problem, are listed.