Turkish students' union protest against BBC in London

LONDON

Turkish students demonstrated against the BBC on Monday over perceptions the national broadcaster’s coverage of a failed coup attempt in Turkey earlier this month was not balanced.

Members of the Turkish Student Union of the U.K. (TUSU), gathered outside New Broadcasting House in central London waving Turkish flags and chanting slogans including, “We are the people: our will, our choice” and “Decide on your profession: are you journalists or agents of imperialism?”

The broadcaster’s coverage of the failed coup attempt was criticized by senior figures, including Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu, after a leaked email revealed producers were “struggling” to find critics of the Turkish government to appear on their programs.

The email, written by a producer working for the BBC World News channel, said personnel were “struggling to find anyone in the country who is critical of what the government is doing.

“We're hoping to find someone here who might be willing to speak out against the current situation,” the email adds.

TUSU general secretary Mustafa Baskara said demonstrators were protesting outside the BBC “in order to carry the voices of more than 240 citizens who lost their lives in this struggle”.

He added that they stood united against “the games” played by external intelligence agencies and media groups upon Turkey.