ABSTRACT
The main focus of this chapter is to explore how the failure of the Turkish media to practice human rights journalism (HRJ) in their reporting of Syrian asylum seekers and refugees seeking sanctuary in their country contributed to racist and xenophobic discourses that portrayed them as a problem to the host nation. This chapter adopts a two-pronged research method, first drawing on an exploratory mapping of xenophobic discourses in the media and their impact on how host communities perceive and treat refugees and voluntary migrants; second, drawing on anecdotal accounts of Turkish journalists and expert trainers who participated in an eight-day workshop targeting 100 Turkish journalists on the topic: ‘Journalism of Tolerance: How to avoid xenophobia in the media’ held in May 2022 at the Sakarya University in Turkey where the lead author of this chapter was the lead facilitator and trainer.
