Chaotic free speech on Ekşi Sözlük finally proved too much after devastating earthquakes hit country
Over time, as political forces rampaged through an increasingly febrile Twitter or blocked content elsewhere, Ekşi Sözlük hosted a hive of politicised misinformation despite its place as a beacon for free expression. Even so, the site remained the last refuge for many Turks in a distorted media landscape that left many desperately seeking out alternative sources of information.
For many of the site’s dedicated users, the ban is simply another round in a long battle between the forces of the internet and Ekşi Sözlük’s many critics. A Turkish daily newspaper once described the site as “the internet’s sewer”, and in 2021 it drew the ire of the president, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan,“a hotbed for fake news, racism and calls for terror”.
“We use their day-to-day services to push messages on the site if we need something fast,” they said. “The thing is, if someone was revealed to be an advertising account the site could remove them, but worse than removal would be the community banishing you. You’d get downvoted, there would be entries mocking you, and you’d be exposed.”
In an interview, Kapanoğlu said he asked users to tone down their descriptions, sparking a tsunami of positive comments, “like, she is three metres tall and known for scoring a goal against Monaco from 75 metres away. Pages and pages of absurd praise for her – then she got mad again.”
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