The Yugoslav wars in the Turkish press and war photojournalism

Photography goes beyond the authority of the photographer when the presentation of wars by news photography is concerned. In this vein, the present study focuses on the photography presentation of the Yugoslav wars in the Turkish press, with the examples of daily papers Hürriyet, Sabah, Cumhuriyet, Türkiye and Zaman. The papers were selected with regard to diverse ownership relations and publishing policies. The study is based on the photographs published in relation to the Slovenian, Croatian, Bosnian and Kosovo wars, which are all known as the Yugoslavia wars. The photographs were analyzed, using visual content analysis and semiotic analysis methods. The sub-objective of the study is to define the construction of the phenomenon of the war photojournalism in Turkey. The results of the study suggest that the newspapers took sides with Bosnia and Kosovo. In quantitative terms, the newspapers put more emphasis on Bosnia and Kosovo, both involved in the Yugoslav wars, and constructed meanings based mainly on the civilian Bosnia and Kosovo people. It may be concluded that the historical, cultural and religious associations between Turkey, and Bosnia and Kosovo played a role in the coverage of these news in newspapers. This coverage is also related to Turkey's foreign policy during those wars. Apart from these associations, the publishing policies of the newspapers explain their varying interpretations. Keywords: War photography, war photojournalism, the Yugoslav wars, visual content analysis, semiotic analysis.