Lisel Hintz

This video of Chicagoans intervening to save a man from being abducted off the streets by ICE is making the rounds on Instagram.

Community action works.

Source: www.instagram.com/reel/DPZL2AL...

News feeds are horrible. So I want to share news of my MENA writing solidarity group.

Week 130 starts Monday. 151 people joined at least one session. Some joined 100+. Email me if interested.

I hope others will start their own groups. I made a blueprint to do so: www.cambridge.org/core/journal...

Hence, for all our sake

So much going on. But I want to keep the continuous resistance of Boğaziçi academics in our minds. For their sake, for all our sake.

Today marked the 1166th vigil. Demonstrators are protesting a government-imposed rector, curbs on academic freedom, and the targeting of students and faculty.

Civil Society Institutions Under Authoritarian Encroachment A broad range of views on democracy to help break the stalemate caused by partisan conflict.

“Authoritarianism succeeds by making dissent costly. When the authoritarian gale sends citizens running for cover, civil society organizations must anchor democratic principles.”

A must-read from my colleague and amazing writer Turkuler Isiksel.

democracyproject.org/posts/civil-...

As usual, great analysis by @gonultol.bsky.social.

My standard response to those asking “Is Turkey pivoting to the West” has always been: No. It’s called hedging. Or strategic autonomy. Read TR media.

Erdoğan consistently positions Turkey as a mediator. It conveniently means you don’t take sides

Trader Yusuf olur bence :)

Symbolic Amplification and Suboptimal Weapons Procurement: Explaining Turkey’s S-400 Program Turkey’s 2019 acquisition of Russian S-400 missile batteries is puzzling. Despite repeated threats of sanctions by the United States, North Atlantic Treaty Organization ally Turkey purchased a mult...

Looks like Erdoğan will soon get the US state visit he didn't with Biden.

Given obstacles to F-35 talks, the symbolism of the visit looms large. In an optimistic move, though, Turkey lifted a few tariffs from Trump 1.0.

On those obstacles, my take w David Banks www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10....

Trump's emotional targeting of comedy figures is so telling. Hypermasculine strongmen DESPISE being made fun of.

Again, look to Turkey. Experts literally testified on whether comparing Erdoğan to Gollum was an insult. A guy sharing a meme was jailed.

And then there's the satire magazine closures.

Ownership consolidation of news, digital, and entertainment platforms in the hands of the few is part of what we call media capture.

It's more insidious than outright seizure or censorship elements. It feeds on profit and quid pro quo cronyism.

5 companies own ~90% of Turkey's private media.

I've felt very much the same way since 2016. Solidarity.

In Turkey, this is called "havuz medyası" ("pool media"). It is achieved via:

1) Vertical dissemination of narratives from the government
2) Political economy ties that incentivize private channels' compliance PLUS
3) Intimidation that combine to produce (often anticipatory) compliance

And now ABC has pulled Jimmy Kimmel's show "indefinitely."

After major pressure from the FCC.

Tell me again why media crackdowns like the fines and TV broadcast bans imposed by Turkey's media watchdog, or the pay-to-play jailing of a powerful Turkish talent agent, "wouldn't happen in the US."

We’re honored!

Thank you so much Gerasimos! Hopefully the related project on foreign threat production that you saw at ISA will be out soon too. I appreciate your interest!

Author Screenshot (T.C. İletişim Başkanlığı 2020)

My article "Film-Making the Nation Great Again" with
@liselhintz.bsky.social is out now in @poppublicsphere.bsky.social!

doi.org/10.1017/S153...

We show how Turkey’s ruling party instrumentalizes history through emotionally evocative videos to legitimize the authoritarian incumbent

🧵

Thanks so much for your interest Dana! I’ll write a thread once I’m done running around at APSA.

I’m so glad @poppublicsphere.bsky.social let us include 12 screenshots. The images make exactly the point we’re arguing. Hope you enjoy it!

My article "Film-Making the Nation Great Again" with @draege.bsky.social is out in Perspectives!

Poli sci work on authoritarianism and populism largely overlooks audiovisual strategies.

Our multi-modal study uses a new dataset of 11,000+ regime YouTube videos in Turkey.

doi.org/10.1017/S153...

Thousands turned out in blazing heat to protest the militarization of DC and much more.

Multiple contingents uniting their grievances, lots of humor, atmosphere of care and solidarity. Reminded me of Gezi.

Fabulous piece, thanks for bringing visibility to this!

My colleague @separkinson.bsky.social does a fantastic job here with the political sides of soccer.

From Çarşı to Barca to Ukrainian ultras, soccer fandom serves as a pre-existing network for protest, with stadiums as the publicly visible arena.

DC women’s soccer makes total sense for Free DC.

Thank you Lisel! I'm still actively looking for new journalism assignments, writing or editing gigs, or other work using my communications skills, ideally to make positive social/cultural/environmental impact. Check out what I do and get in touch about projects that might be a match!

I add that for these three vehicles to make what amounts to a U-turn, it took multiple police cars to stop traffic. And a uniformed National Guard member jumping out of an unmarked car to yell “get back in” at another member who got out, probably to direct traffic.

Spectacle chaos.

Just your average Saturday night in southeast DC

Of course Meta did.

Good thread on media + protest, told through a DC soccer lens.

News coverage shapes publics' perception of protest. When mainstream outlets are silent, social media can fill the gap (e.g., Gezi). So autocrats make moves to capture/censor both, leading mainstream media into anticipatory compliance.

Want to turn a paper into a journal submission? With senior scholar feedback? This a great opportunity, esp. for MENA PhDs/early career scholars.

I've been a discussant for a bunch of these and they are always super valuable discussions. Happy to answer questions!

Apply: pomeps.org/call-for-app...

Huge congrats Jannis - sounds like a fascinating project!

Fantastic resource - thanks for assembling and sharing!

With so much going on, it’s hard for anyone to focus.

My MENA writing group, which aims to provide structure and solidarity, just finished Week 122. Even today we had a new participant.

MENA scholars at all levels are welcome to join to help meet writing deadlines.

Message or email me