The changes created by new media in public service broadcasting: The relationship between Turkish radio and television corporation and new media

The developments that occurred after the period following 1980 caused radical transformations in media. The changes in radio and television broadcasting emerged on the basis of these developments. Neo-liberal strategies, deregulation practice and technological improvements not only paved the way for private entrepreneurship in radio and television broadcasting sector, but also led the transformation of traditional broadcasting. Broadcasting corporations reshaped the traditional radio and television broadcasting practices; on the other hand, they took yet another turn in facilitating and developing the spreading of these practices in new media. The fundamental expectation for change, which came about in this process, emerged at the point of transforming the logic of streaming and broadcasting of mass communication organs thanks to new media technologies into a quality that covers mutuality. Thus, there began a period when the passive audience is re-positioned as the active participants of broadcasting activity. While digital and new media platforms make it available to access any desired content, this medium require the production of various types of contents in new kinds of areas. The unveiling tendencies of broadcasting corporations to spread their activities in this medium with the sweeping and gradual intrication of the means and platforms reveal the necessity to evaluate and interpret broadcasting via these fundamental developments. Within this context, this study focuses on the transformation that the Turkish Radio and Television Corporation (TRT) has gone through in terms of the ways in which the public service broadcasters orientate with new media technologies and the new practice they carry on in this medium. The thesis examines how TRT is attuned to the digital media as a public service broadcaster, how it widens its area of practice, in what level it brings forth the principles of public service broadcasting in its new practice areas and what differences it has when compared to other commercial corporations. In this scope, TRT websites are taken for analysis. It is known that internet based systems has changed broadcasting in a general sense and brought out a new style of broadcasting that highlights dialogue and participation rather than the distribution of unilateral information or content. Consequently, one of the focus points of this study is how websites have changed and reformed the traditional broadcasting style of TRT. In this sense, the aim of this study is to approach and assess the changes created by new media in public service broadcasting in Turkey within the context of the relationship between TRT and new media. Starting from this point of view, the websites of the channels belonging to TRT are examined with content analysis method and the data obtained is evaluated on the basis of theoretical discussion related to the transformation of broadcasting and public service broadcasting. As a result of the examination, it has been attained that TRT has been extending its activities via its websites, gives importance to this medium in terms of the location, visibility and accessibility and makes effort to pay attention to the principles of public service broadcasting while conducting these activities.