Can Soysal – Malmö University 2011 DISSONANT VOICES A Discourse Analysis of Turkish Language Media in Germany by Can Soysal Thesis submitted to the Faculty of Culture and Society in partial fulfillment of the requirement for the Degree of Master of Arts in International Migration and Ethnic Relations at Malmö University January 2012 Supervisor: Anna Sofie Roald 1 Can Soysal – Malmö University 2011 Abstract On the 50th anniversary of the labour recruitment agreement between Germany and Turkey, Turkish migrants in Germany continue to occupy a central position as the objects of the on-going public discussions on immigration and integration. This study explores, with a transnational perspective, how the discourses on migrant integration are formulated in the transnational Turkish language media in Germany, as well as, if and how those discourses differ from, comply with or resist the dominant integrationist discourse in Germany. To reach this aim, discourse analysis on empirical material consisting of 97 articles from the European editions of newspapers Zaman and Hürriyet, has been conducted within the theoretical perspective informed by the ideas of Michel Foucault. The study concludes that there are conflicting and overlapping discourses on integration manifested in the Turkish language media in Germany, which are in varying degrees resisting to and in conformity with the dominant integrationist discourse in Germany. The resistance and compliance occurs in a complex and transnational way, in the reflection of the political and ideological fault lines in Turkey. Keywords: immigration, integration, media, discourse, Turkish, Germany, Zaman ,Hürriyet 2 Can Soysal – Malmö University 2011 Table of Contents 1. INTRODUCTION ........................................................................................................ 4 1.1. Aim of the Research, Research Questions, Delimitations ..................................... 5 2. BACKGROUND .......................................................................................................... 6 2.1. Turks in Germany .................................................................................................. 6 2.2. Turkish Print Media in Germany ........................................................................... 9 2.3. Zaman and Hürriyet ............................................................................................. 10 2.3.1. Zaman and Political Islam ................................................................................ 12 2.3.2. Hürriyet and Media Wars ................................................................................. 18 3. THEORY AND METHODOLOGY .......................................................................... 23 3.1. Theoretical Background ....................................................................................... 23 3.1.1. Language and Reality: Modernism, Structuralism and Post-Structuralism ............ 23 3.1.2. The Power of Words: Discourse, Power, Knowledge, Ideology and Resistance .... 28 3.2. Methodology ........................................................................................................ 33 3.2.1. Discourse Analysis ........................................................................................... 35 3.2.2. Research Design .............................................................................................. 38 4. MIGRATION AND INTEGRATION ........................................................................ 41 5. DOMINANT DISCOURSE IN GERMANY ............................................................. 44 6. ANALYSIS................................................................................................................. 51 6.1. Meaning of ‘Integration’ ...................................................................................... 51 6.2. The Place of Religion ........................................................................................... 55 6.3. Language .............................................................................................................. 59 6.4. Media Representation .......................................................................................... 61 6.5. Political Participation ........................................................................................... 64 6.6. Culture .................................................................................................................. 66 7. CONCLUSION........................................................................................................... 71 References ....................................................................................................................... 75 Newspaper Articles ......................................................................................................... 79 3 Can Soysal – Malmö University 2011 1. INTRODUCTION 2011 marked the official celebrations of the 50th anniversary of the labour recruitment agreement between Turkey and Germany. Through most of the last 50 years immigrants in Germany , and Turks specifically, has been a central element of continuous discussions, struggles, plans , policies, measurements, restrictions , negotiations, identity and cultural formations, thus over half a century ,millions of Turkish immigrants in Germany became an important part of the contemporary history of Germany. Not only of Germany, with the transnational world they created, Turks in Germany have also had an important role in the contemporary history of Turkey. While the second half of 2000s in Germany was marked with the proclamation of the ‘death of multiculturalism’, the record high sales of a controversial anti- immigrant book, the reveal of extreme-right violence and the growth of the far-right parties, it has also been the period that more Turks started to move to Turkey than the Turks coming to Germany. Many of those coming to Turkey were born in Germany. German Chancellor Angela Merkel spoke out about this new trend and claimed that young Turks who received good education in Germany and have multi- lingual skills are utilizing the job opportunities in Turkey (04.10.2011). In the shadow of the central position of migrants in contemporary histories of host societies and the recent anti-immigration movements, what is striking about the discussions on the topics like migration, immigrants or integration is that the voice of the people who are the topic of the discussions are usually absent in the discussions, and Germany is no exception for this. There is often a deliberate neglect of migrants’ transnational affiliations and ethnic media (Kosnick 2007:17). But of course the absence in the discussions in mainstream media does not mean that the Turks are not discussing these issues. Along with the varieties of print media, the rise of internet media and availability to more than 50 TV stations, including 4 Can Soysal – Malmö University 2011 Turkish language TV stations specific to Europe besides the regular Turkish TV stations, creates a massive transnational space where ideas and counter-ideas are produced and shared on the issues related to migration, as those issues are central to the lives of Turkish migrants in Germany. 1.1. Aim of the Research, Research Questions The aim of this research is to understand how discourses on migrant integration in Germany are formulated in the transnational Turkish language media in Germany, and, if and how the discourses differ from the dominant integrationist discourse in Germany. To reach this aim, the study will analyse, with a transnational perspective, articles from Turkish language newspapers that are prepared and printed in Germany, with the goal of identifying common themes of argumentations and comparing them with the arguments of the dominant integrationist discourse in Germany. The following research questions are formulated to reach the aim of the study: What are the common themes of argumentation in Turkish language print media on the topic of migrant integration? If and how do the discourses differ among Turkish language print media on the topic of migrant integration? If and how do the discourses in Turkish language print media on migrant integration differ from the dominant discourse in Germany? 5 Can Soysal – Malmö University 2011 2. BACKGROUND In order to be able to place the object of analysis in a broader socio-political contexts, under this section, a detailed background of Turkish migrants in Germany, the Turkish language press in Germany, the background information on Zaman, with a focus on transnational political Islam, and the background information on Hürriyet, with a focus on its place within the political struggles in Turkey, will be given. 2.1. Turks in Germany While the year 2011 marked the official celebrations of the 50th anniversary of the labor recruitment agreement between Turkey and Germany, it has also been the year in which heated public debate was sparked by the arrest of a member of a neo-Nazi organization, which is accused of being responsible for the infamous “Döner Killings” that took place between 2000 and 2007, targeting 8 small business owners of Turkish origin , and by the possible links of German domestic intelligence service ,BfV (The Guardian ,15.11.2011). Even though Turkish migration to Germany goes back centuries with Ottoman elites establishing trade relations and training at educational institutions, Turkish labour migration to Germany is commonly considered to have started with the