The “Sports Journalism” event was organized by the Journalism Department of Üsküdar Üniversitesi Faculty of Communication. Fotospor General Coordinator Cahit Yavuz, Sports Announcer Elis Buse Araç, and Türkiye Gazetesi Sports Reporter Ferhat Kızıltaş attended the event, which garnered significant interest. The current state of sports media was discussed at the event.
Doç. Dr. Bahar Muratoğlu Pehlivan moderated the event, which took place at Üsküdar Üniversitesi Fuat Sezgin Conference Hall.
Rector's Advisor Prof. Dr. Süleyman İrvan and Head of the Journalism Department of the Faculty of Communication Assoc. Dr. Gül Esra Atalay also attended the organized event.
Cahit Yavuz: “We have an audience that can be inspired, as long as we provide that inspiration”
Fotospor General Coordinator Cahit Yavuz, who describes information from all kinds of media outlets in sports media as a product and emphasizes the importance of being inspired to benefit from these products, stated: “Farmers produce tomatoes and eggplants, and we take them from them. We meet certain needs. The first of these needs is to be inspired. To be inspired, one needs to do things that inspire. To do this, there must be production, which is sports production. Within sports production, there are organizations. These organizations convey a message to society, and we, as this society and individuals within it, receive those messages. When a topic is conveyed by the media, our people accept it and can pursue this information; in other words, we have an audience that can be inspired, as long as we can provide that inspiration.”
“One needs to be very knowledgeable to comment”
Emphasizing the importance of knowledge in sports commentary, Cahit Yavuz said: “To make a comment, one needs to know a little bit of physiology, a little bit of anatomy. To make a comment, one needs to be very knowledgeable. When these pieces of information are known, a difference emerges between you and the person in the stands. That's why I think we are talking about a human-related topic. Within a human-related topic, how does the mind respond, what is the methodology of thinking? It is really difficult to comment without knowing these. And when comments are made, they can sometimes be a bit nonsensical. In our country, being nonsensical can sometimes be pleasant and humorous, but there is no production involved. Therefore, knowledge is extremely important, but this knowledge is not just statistical data. It also needs to be knowledge of measurement and evaluation. Otherwise, they are just opinions. Everyone respects all kinds of opinions, but commenting is a bit different from that.”
Elis Buse Araç: “I am the only woman making transfer news in the sports world”
Sports Announcer Elis Buse Araç, emphasizing that everyone in the industry is the same and therefore being different in one's work is a privilege, said: “First of all, there are many women in the industry, and our number is increasing every day, but we are all carbon copies of one another. We all stand in front of a camera and read the news. Why are we all the same? We are lined up like links in a chain, everyone in the same role? Being the same bores me greatly. For this reason, I sought a difference in the industry. I never aimed for the highest positions, but I always aimed to be different. I asked myself, ‘What are women not doing in this sector?’ and I saw that women were not making transfer news or giving exclusive reports, and I said that I would open a different path for women. Today, I am the only woman making transfer news in the sports world.”
“There are two golden rules to remember”
Araç, touching upon one of the biggest problems in the industry being reporters now getting information from each other, said: “If you are going to do this job, there are two golden rules you must not forget. First, no journalist takes information from another journalist. Second, all information needs confirmation. They convey the information they receive directly without confirming it. You must confirm every piece of information. Only then can you transmit it, because afterward, this situation leads to misinformation. There is no evil that misinformation cannot cause.”
Ferhat Kızıltaş: “The number of writers in digital media will surpass traditional media”
Türkiye Gazetesi Sports Reporter Ferhat Kızıltaş, discussing the reasons why sports commentators left traditional media for digital media, said: “Many commentators had started leaving television and shifting to digital media. I was very curious about the problem behind this. Of course, economic gain can be a determining factor here, but when we investigated this, censorship is very decisive here; there is a comfortable environment in digital media. In traditional media, there is an abundance of middle-aged commentators, and young people are not given many opportunities. Looking five years ahead, the number of writers in digital media will have increased much more than in traditional media because now they can all provide transfer news and be cited as sources. For example, they enter transfer news by sourcing just one person. This used to be very impossible in my opinion. This, in my opinion, has increased personal journalism. The number of writers in digital media will surpass traditional media.”
“Broadcasters on television channels cannot connect much with their viewers”
Kızıltaş, talking about the pros and cons of being able to reach commentators in live broadcasts, said: “Broadcasters on television channels cannot connect much with their viewers. Even if they disagree, they cannot say anything directly, but in live broadcasts, I can make a comment and reach the commentator there. I can comment on their posts that have received millions of views, and they can also sue me. Comments can reach the level of insult. There is also another problem: now, if certain conditions are met, a fee can be paid per view. I think this has created a huge problem because reporters have started posting content that specifically provokes their rival competitors. Because when this is posted, it will get an incredible number of views.”
The event concluded with a group photo.