"Published in 2024, the book offers a critical examination of how Turkey's ruling Justice and Development Party has sought to reposition the country on the world stage. In the 2010s, the party launched an English-language media system to elevate Turkey's image, counter Western criticism of its increasingly authoritarian practices, and promote its own geopolitical and economic interests. Yesil's analysis traces how party-backed outlets frame Turkey as a champion of the oppressed and a counterweight to Western powers,"
"while also revealing how media and communication initiatives often obscure facts, rely on identity politics, and weaponize anti-Western rhetoric to consolidate domestic power and bolster Turkey's regional ambitions. Bilge Yesil, a professor of media culture at the College of Staten Island, Willowbrook, was awarded the Distinguished Scholarship Award - Best Book of 2025, from the National Communication Association's International and Intercultural Communication Division."
"As academics, we invest a great deal of time and energy in our work - often over many years - so it is deeply rewarding to see it recognized and appreciated by readers. It's also a reminder that all those long days (and nights) of research and writing were worthwhile, and that the ideas I hoped would spark conversation are finding an audience."
Bilge Yesil received the National Communication Association's Distinguished Scholarship Award - Best Book of 2025 for a 2024 study of Turkish international communication. The book examines how the Justice and Development Party created an English-language media system in the 2010s to improve Turkey's image, deflect Western critique of authoritarian practices, and pursue geopolitical and economic goals. The analysis shows party-backed outlets portray Turkey as a defender of the oppressed and a counterweight to Western powers. The work argues that media initiatives can obscure facts, exploit identity politics, and weaponize anti-Western rhetoric to consolidate domestic authority and regional influence.
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