Türkiye shifts from print to digital media for official announcements

The Turkish Statistical Institute (TurkStat) has published its 2024 periodical publication statistics, highlighting a marked decline in both the number and circulation of newspapers authorized to publish official announcements throughout Türkiye.

According to the report, which has been cited in an article by the Daily Sabah, the number of newspapers permitted to carry official notices fell by 11.9% from the previous year, totalling 753 publications. Of these, the vast majority—95.9%—were local newspapers, while 3.1% were national and 1.1% were regional. Despite the numerical dominance of local outlets, national newspapers overwhelmingly led in circulation, accounting for 80.1% of the total. Overall, the annual circulation of these newspapers dropped sharply by 27.5%, falling to 462.7 million copies.

The data also reflects the growing influence of digital media. In 2024, a total of 349 news websites published official announcements. These sites attracted more than 9.2 billion unique visits and recorded over 46.7 billion page views. General news portals were the primary source of this online traffic, responsible for 56.1% of all visits and 68.6% of total page views, underlining the shift from print to digital consumption of official information.

For magazines carrying official advertisements, 51.9% were issued monthly, followed by bi-monthly and weekly releases. Regarding newspapers, 60.6% of those authorized to publish official announcements were printed daily, while the rest appeared two to six days per week. Notably, daily newspapers accounted for 99.6% of the total print circulation, indicating their continued relevance despite the decline in overall print numbers.

The statistics also provided insight into employment trends within the sector. Newspapers employed a total of 4,315 individuals in 2024. Most staff held either a high school diploma (37.8%) or a bachelor's degree (34%). Reporters made up the largest share of newspaper personnel, comprising 44.5% of employees. By contrast, news websites had a higher percentage of university-educated staff, with 56.3% holding bachelor’s degrees. Reporters represented 39.7% of staff at online outlets, while web editors made up another 36.3%, underscoring the technical and editorial demands of digital publishing.

These figures collectively illustrate the broader transformation of media in Türkiye, where traditional print outlets continue to decline while digital platforms gain prominence in the dissemination of official information and news.

By Nazrin Sadigova