Üsküdar University Rector Nazife Güngör stated that there are information gaps in the Narin Güran murder case, and the media is trying to fill these gaps by writing 'scenarios'. Güngör, who said that the media should inform society with accurate and reasonable information, added, “The only concern should not be ratings and circulation.”
8-year-old Narin Güran went missing in Diyarbakır on August 21 and her lifeless body was found in a streambed 19 days later.
The investigation into Narin Güran's death, conducted by the Diyarbakır Chief Public Prosecutor's Office, is ongoing.
Üsküdar University Rector, Prof. Dr. Nazife Güngör, made evaluations on the matter during the İsmet Özçelik’le Ankara Farkı program broadcast on Radyo Sputnik. Emphasizing the media's social responsibility, Güngör gave the following messages:
‘Media should focus on healing, not illness’
“When a journalist conveys information about events, they must accurately predict the social impact of that information. If that social impact will make society even more unhealthy, then a information filtering process should be applied accordingly. Information should not make society sicker. If there is an illness somewhere, the information provided should contribute to its healing through a particular discourse. Therefore, media professionals need to pay attention to all these points. Media's only concern should not be ratings and circulation. Media should not use tragic events in society as a tool for its own show. We are all responsible to society, but the media bears the most responsibility. Because each of our journalists is also an opinion leader, a role model. Therefore, every statement made by that role model affects society. So, if a journalist goes on television and cries instead of narrating the event, society will also cry. Media must contribute to healing, not illness.”
‘Media should convey information, not fill gaps with comments’
“Through this little child, many people are saying various things every day, getting involved in the incident and the agenda. Media organizations are conducting various discussions, and concerned or unconcerned individuals are saying various things on social media. There are information gaps regarding the issue. Perhaps the biggest mistake the media is making is that our journalists are trying to fill those gaps with comments. There are gaps concerning the rationale, and the investigation processes regarding the cause of the event are ongoing. Some media organizations and journalists feel the need to fill all those gaps.”
‘Justice should be allowed to do its job’
“Sadly, a little girl was taken from life. But what needs to be done now is to let justice do its job. Legal processes are ongoing. The necessary information will be conveyed after the legal processes. Of course, journalists will follow the event and inform the public. However, while reporting on events, they must carefully consider the psychological state of society and the dynamics within society. Because when the media reports on events, these events should not turn into a traumatic situation that affects society. Therefore, every piece of news, every piece of information conveyed to society, should aim to heal society, not to wound it further. Because if there is a problem, the journalist's primary mission is to provide information that will help prevent this problem from happening again. It is to provide information that will contribute to solving these problems. For this, first and foremost, news sources must be very accurately identified.”
‘Moral panic is being created in society’
“Related and unrelated circles are instrumentalizing this event, raising emotional tension and moral panic in society. Many children of the same age might be experiencing traumas. The issue is covered so extensively in the media that an already traumatic event continuously turns into a societal trauma. Information is being conveyed with various baseless scenarios.”
‘Society should not be accustomed to such events’
“Everyone is saying something about the event. Because there is a search for material in the media, the event has somehow been moved away from its main axis and trivialized. Society is actually not as saddened by murders and acts of violence as it used to be. Journalists shed tears on screen, but society has gotten used to it now. If elements of violence are used so much in all kinds of images in the media, people gradually become accustomed. Therefore, it is necessary to question whether it has turned into a societal trauma or whether society is in such a chaotic state, at a standstill, that it cannot experience traumas.”