Turkish government officials, lawmakers, mayors and pro-government journalists have lined up to demonize this newspaper and its editors over its reporting as part of a concerted campaign to defame the paper. Many trolls have been harassing the newspaper's Editor-in-Chief Bulent Kenes and other editors for publishing a report about the daughter of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. Today's Zaman published the news story after an opposition lawmaker submitted a parliamentary inquiry. Preserving journalistic standards, Today's Zaman only reported the invitation of an extremist emir to marry Sümeyye Erdogan, the president's daughter. The story did not include any commentary or viewpoint. The story was also published in dozens of other Turkish news outlets, but only Today's Zaman has become the subject of a smear campaign. Turkey is known for its intolerance to media and the authorities are exploiting various laws to crack down on critical voices. Tuesday's smear campaign was part of a systematically orchestrated drive to demonize the newspaper, which is known for its critical coverage. This is not the first time Today's Zaman has been under attack by trolls and government officials. It is easier to build a defamation campaign for Today's Zaman reporting because most Turks do not speak English. Many government officials, who don't speak English, publicly bashed and belittled Today's Zaman for the report. Keneş, the newspaper's most-attacked editor, repeatedly explained that the story does not include a single word of insult and that it was written to report a newsworthy development. After pro-government trolls built up their momentum against Today's Zaman, the torch was passed to government officials, who used obscenities and insults to describe how Today's Zaman "betrayed the homeland." A smear campaign is a widely used method to silence critics in Turkey. The campaign against Today's Zaman came at a time when the country was rocked by the statements of Lt. Col. Mehmet Alkan, the brother of a slain Turkish soldier. Many critics claimed on Twitter that the smear campaign is designed to cover up the officer's embarrassing outburst. "Let alone being a Muslim, if you had any relationship with humanity, you would not do something this low and shameful," Nihat Zeybekci, economy minister, tweeted by attaching a snapshot of Today's Zaman's related story. Ruling Justice and Development Party (AK Party) lawmaker Mahir Ünal and Süleyman Soylu also insulted Today's Zaman for the story. Gaziantep Mayor Fatma Sahin said, "You can now expect every kind of immorality from this parallel," referring to the Gulen or Hizmet movement. AK Party lawmaker samil Tayyar, along with dozens of other government officials, also uttered insults to belittle the newspaper. Throughout the night, pro-government trolls harassed editors, including expressing death threats against Editor-in-Chief Kenes. Sümeyye Erdoğan's lawyer, meanwhile, asked courts to block access to related stories of nine newspapers and news portals. Today's Zaman was not among them. Later on Tuesday, the court demanded the telecommunications authority to impose a ban to links to the stories.
