(Person) Percentage - Sabanci University Research Database

The Asian Media & Mass Communication Conference 2010 Osaka, Japan
perception and representation since here, too, there is a generalization, simplification and
categorization about majority. The news example:
“Some anti-nuclear people are agents” (Heading, www.nukte.org, a news published in the
newspaper Zaman, 03.03.2007)
“I am sure that most of them are good willed, earnest, idealist people but they do not know
about the nuclear problematic. Also, a small group tries to harbor within them which consists
of the extensions of those who fear that Turkey might be a first class state.” (Heading,
www.nukte.org, a news published in the newspaper Zaman)
Beside the discourses like existence of petrol lobby agents among anti-nuclear
environmentalist groups and blocking Turkey’s struggle to be a first class state, a parallel
stereotypic perception carries the implication of “provocation.” In the concerned news, the
prime minister, who was protested by Greenpeace members during a group meeting, describes
such an action as a provocation effort against Turkey’s utilization of nuclear energy. The
expression of “provocation effort” implies that the related activists are provocateurs and tools
of others. The related part in the news:
“While prime minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan was talking during TBMM Group Meeting, two
Greenpeace activist unfurled a banner reading ‘We want no nuclear plant in Sinop and
Mersin’ ...Erdoğan said:We are not going to allow those who come with a piece of rag and
try to provoke against Turkey’s utilization of nuclear energy. We are taking steps towards it.
What these people are doing is not about country development or meeting of energy necessity
or anything like that. They do not know what they are doing, either. Some people slip two
pieces of rags into their hands and bring them here. These activists are not aware of the real
pros and cons of their actions...” (www.nethaber.com, 09.02.2010).
Conclusion
Media representations of environmentalists seem to contain a characteristic which parallels
the “marginality” perception in society. This results in a question over whether the existing
position is a reproduction or whether it forms through the evaluations regarding
environmentalists by persons or organizations as news actors. The answer to this question has
a long historical past extending to youth movements that began in the USA in 1950s and
spread worldwide. The fact that the youth, being called “hippies”, backed the
environmentalist movement caused environmentalism and environmentalists to be perceived
as “hippy.” Along with came the “idler” and “marginal” perception against environmentalists.
Environmentalist actions being different from conventional practices of action served as a
confirmation of this perception.
In regard to the example newspaper writing types published in both printed and internet
media, it is seen that some perceptions and descriptions come to the fore which are in parallel
to the findings above. So it could be said that in the newspaper writing types examined, a
“marginality” perception regarding environmentalists is made a subject matter, while in some
other examples environmentalists are directly described or referenced in this negative light. It
is possible to make the assessment that the perceptions and representations such as
“marginal”, “idler”, “recreational”, “ignorant”, “agent”, “extensions of some circles” carry a
stereotypic quality since this type of perceptions and representations, whether in a general or
in a partial context, make references to a social group, to belonging to that social group, and
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