Popular Culture and Politics in Turkey: The Cranberry Sorbet Controversy
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.47613/reflektif.2023.128Keywords:
popular culture, television series, censorship, cultural policyAbstract
The popular Turkish television series Cranberry Sorbet revolves around interactions between a religious-conservative and a secular family. The decision of the Television and Radio Higher Council to censor the show a month prior to the critical elections of May 2023 gave rise to a heated controversy in the Turkish public sphere. In the meantime, a character from the series, Nursema, attained the status of a political symbol and featured prominantly in public discussions about the elections. Based on the analysis of the public debate on Cranberry Sorbet, the article examines the relations between popular culture and politics in contemporary Turkey. The study concludes that fictional popular culture opens up an important space for citizens to reflect on their society and debate political issues. The article also finds evidence of the ‘Streisand effect,’ whereby censorship might backfire by drawing more public attention to its object.
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