The 2nd Congress of the Turkish Internet Media Association (TİMBİR), established within the framework of the Law on the Establishment of International Organizations by the Decree No. 6906 of the President of Turkey Recep Tayyip Erdoğan dated March 7, 2023, has been held in Ankara.
The congress was attended by heads of state institutions, media organizations, the non-governmental sector, representatives of science and the public, as well as TİMBİR members from Turkey and abroad.
Among the participants of the congress were the Chairman of the TİMBİR High Advisory Board and former Secretary General of the Turkish National Security Council Seyfullah Hacımüftüoğlu, 24th term AKP Member of Parliament Rıfat Sait, Head of the Department of the General Directorate of Relations with Civil Society of the Turkish Ministry of Interior Fahrettin Kaya, RATEM Chairman Vedat Gündoğan, Turkish Journalists Federation Chairman Yılmaz Karaca, EcoEurasia Foundation President Hikmet Eren, TÜRKSİT Chairman Kamal Kurnaz, International Journalists Federation Chairman Şakir Gürel, HUDER Chairman Hasan Oymak, Turkish Education Association Chairman Selçuk Pehlivanoğlu, member of the Board of the Azerbaijan Press Council Aqil Alasgar, and members of the TİMBİR Board of Directors.
Speaking at the opening of the congress, TİMBİR Chairman Dr. Süleyman Basa stated that the union has become a common platform for internet media in a short time. According to him, TİMBİR is currently represented in 81 provinces of Turkey and 26 countries of the world.
“TİMBİR operates today in 81 cities and 26 countries. We have built a strong organization that unites hundreds of media institutions under the same roof.”
Basa emphasized that the congress does not only aim to determine the leadership, but is also of great importance in terms of evaluating the activities of the last three years and setting future goals.
“We are not just holding a congress here today. At the same time, we are reporting on our three years of work and determining the goals of the new period together.”
The Chairman noted that TİMBİR carries out extensive activities in the areas of media ethics, press freedom, combating disinformation, digital security, copyright, media education, and international cooperation. Stating that strengthening local media is one of the main priorities, Basa said:
“We carried the voice of the local to the center, we showed all of Turkey that local journalism is not alone.”
He added that numerous projects and training programs have been implemented in the fields of digital violence, cyberbullying, disaster journalism, media literacy, culture and tourism journalism, gastronomy journalism, ethical principles, copyright, and combating addictions.
TİMBİR High Advisory Board Chairman Seyfullah Hacımüftüoğlu stated in his speech that the union has gone through a path of continuous development since its inception and has become a strong institutional body. According to him, TİMBİR has created a solid organization throughout Anatolia and has managed to unite media representatives from every region of Turkey under the same umbrella.
Hacımüftüoğlu emphasized that they must work harder in the new period, stating: “The moment we stop, we move away from the goal. We must pedal faster. Because the world is changing very rapidly.”
Other speakers also emphasized that TİMBİR’s three-year performance was satisfactory.
Later, the composition of TİMBİR’s Board of Directors, Supervisory and Disciplinary Boards, Policy Advisory Board, Internet Ethics Board, Young TİMBİR, GİMER and Media Technologies Board, as well as regional heads for the new term were determined.
Hasan Kartal chaired the Congress Divan. The members of the Divan were Cüneyd Altıparmak, Semra Aman Akyürek, and Serkan Kundakçı.
Head of “Yeni Çağ” Media Group, member of the Board of the Azerbaijan Press Council Aqil Ələsgər was re-elected to the TİMBİR Board of Directors.
Board of Directors (Main staff):
Süleyman Basa (Chairman)
Hasan Özdemir (Bursa)
Adil Koçalan (Istanbul)
Aqil Ələsgər (Azerbaijan)
Cengiz Aksan (Şanlıurfa)
Cüneyd Altıparmak (Ankara)
Ercihan Çakmak (Kırıkkale)
Ertan Birinci (TRNC)
Fatih Tüten (Ankara)
Hakan Kandemir (Izmir)
Hasan Cengiz (Kastamonu)
Adem Erdağı (Denizli)
Hasan Yavuz Bakır (Rize)
Mehmet Aydın (Aydın)
Menderes Demir (Osmaniye)
Muammer Baloğlu (Zonguldak)
Muhammet Kaçar (Ankara)
Nevser Tavgaç Eraslan (Edirne)
Osman Ateşli (Istanbul)
Özkan Dikmen (Tekirdağ)
Rıfat Sait (Izmir)
Sait Çetintaş (Samsun)
Selçuk Özdemir (Erzincan)
Semra A. Akyürek (Balıkesir)
Tanju Akıncıoğlu (Trabzon)
Veysel Cıncık (Hatay)
Yücel Yalçınkaya (Istanbul)