Focus
Supporting Women Journalists in Turkey
Project empowered dozens of participants across the country through training and mentorship.
Years active: 2022-2023
Women working in local newsrooms in Turkey face multiple challenges, including prejudice, exclusion and harassment. An IWPR project, Building the Capacity and Resilience of Women Journalists in Turkey, empowered more than 50 participants from across the country to face these challenges through a combination of training and mentoring.
The 12-month project culminated in a symposium that created guidelines on how to build a better working environment and increase employment prospects for women journalists that have been shared with more than 70 local newsrooms across Turkey.
Workshops also included training in digital security to increase their resilience to online harassment.
In addition, a mentor from the Marie Colvin Journalists' Network (MCJN) discussed how MCJN operates to support female media workers in the Middle East and how a similar network could be created in Turkey.
Participants agreed that creating a network of women journalists would be a positive move.
“There are many professional organisations in Turkey, but there is very little work done specifically for women journalists,” noted one female participant from Adana.
A journalist from Izmir pointed out that creating such a network “would be very important because it would empower a new generation of women in this profession”.
In order to secure lasting support to women journalists from local newsrooms, IWPR also organised a training for 15 male editors-in-chief and media owners from newsrooms across Turkey to raise awareness of the problems their female staff face.
IWPR’s project Building the Capacity and Resilience of Women Journalists in Turkey, supported by the Dutch government’s Matra Programme, ran for a year from October 2022.
“The 12-month project culminated in a symposium that created guidelines on how to build a better working environment and increase employment prospects for women journalists that have been shared with more than 70 local newsrooms across Turkey.”
Editorial Highlights
How Women Market Traders are Revitalising Village Life in Izmir
Female entrepreneurship has boosted the local economy and is passing cultural heritage to future generations.
 | Ezgi Yeşilbaş PROJECT OFFICER AT NEWSLABTURKEY |
“We are the ones that keep that culture alive.”
Erdogan’s New Islamist Allies Raise Fears Over Domestic Violence Protections
The move follows Turkey's withdrawal from the Istanbul Convention.
 | Çağrı Sarı ISTANBUL BASED REPORTER & EDITOR |
“The elimination of laws protecting women through such attacks will cast a shadow over all women who live in Turkey.”
Behind the Wheel in a Macho City
Some women face Adana's male-dominated traffic chaos for a living.
 | Gonca Tokyol FREELANCE JOURNALIST |
"Our female drivers hang onto their jobs for longer than our male drivers."
Meet the Former Teacher Growing Hi-Tech Strawberries
“They’re like my children, I give them love and affection every day.”
 | Ece Çolak CONTRIBUTOR |
Price Rises Make Contraceptives Unaffordable for Many
The country’s economic crisis and conservative attitudes are combining to restrict access to birth control.
 | Bilge Can Ünbal JOURNALIST |
The New Wave of Female Stand-ups
Despite the sexist attitudes faced by women who take up comedy, a growing number are fighting back.
 | Emel Altay JOURNALIST |
“There are many professional organisations in Turkey, but there is very little work done specifically for women journalists,” noted one female participant from Adana.
