Providing a Better Understanding of Turkey
The first edition of Today's Zaman has come out, debuting with lofty ideals and a broad vision, aware of the responsibility it has undertaken both for the Turkish public and for Turkey. Today's Zaman, the product of an intellectual journey of long years, has come into being after four months of intensive work.
It is our responsibility to introduce you, our esteemed readers, to our paper in all its aspects, including its mission and vision.
TODAY'S ZAMAN'S MISSION: Today, a lack of sufficient communication plays a major role in tension and conflicts worldwide as well as in the formation of prejudices people and nations have about one another. Although this era is called the age of communication or the information age, it is obvious that this is not reflected in people's minds.
The Internet helps us send information to another person or place or find the information we need in seconds. Thanks to air travel, it is possible to reach a remote location in hours, a trip that earlier took months to make. Then why are people so distant from one another? What can explain a lack of communication in this age of communication?
We sometimes witness Turkey, the Turkish people or Turkish culture being perceived unfairly by the world community. Certainly, it would be irrational to explain this with a single reason, but the fact that we cannot express ourselves clearly in English, the common language of communication around the world, is among the reasons. Our failure to express ourselves clearly and clarify the reality of our country paves the way for some circles that are often not well intentioned to take advantage of this.
So we feel that Today's Zaman will be a bridge between the world and Turkey and between Turks and foreigners living in Turkey. Today's Zaman will have extensive and objective news coverage and original commentaries that will speak to the facts of Turkey both in Turkey and on the international platform.
Today's Zaman will not be merely a collection of commentaries and diplomacy-based issues; it will also be full of analyses and interviews that will reflect life in Turkey with all its colors. That's why we've adapted the expression "Your way of understanding Turkey" as our motto.
TODAY'S ZAMAN'S VISION: The paper that we are proud to present to you today is a small but significant step for a Turkey-based international English daily. As a matter of fact, Today's Zaman's editorial staff and writers - both Turks and foreign journalists -- were gathered together to address the needs of international journalism. You will have an opportunity to learn more about this exceptional group, which includes 40 unique pens from around the world, in our introductory pages.
Today's Zaman, which aims to give a clear picture of Turkey, will first be published in Turkey in hard copy. Later on, we intend to publish in various regions and countries around the glove that either speak or can communicate in English.
TODAY'S ZAMAN'S CONTENT: The paper will be published six days a week in color. On Sundays, Today's Zaman will be replaced by Sunday's Zaman -- again 20 pages in full color. Today's Zaman will mainly handle hot news while Sunday's Zaman has been designed like a weekly paper including features, analyses and articles about issues concerning Turkey and Turks.
Sunday's Zaman will be published in coordination with British daily, The Times, with both logos appearing on the front page.
Today's Zaman, with a wide-ranging, varied and rich content prepared by our strong news crew in Ankara and experienced editorial staff in İstanbul, will have special pages addressing diplomats and expatriates living in Turkey as well as local and foreign professionals from the business world.
However, Today's Zaman will address not only diplomatic topics but all kinds of issues affecting Turkey and the rest of the world. There will be extensive commentaries and analyses along with economy, politics, culture/arts, sports and newsreel that will meet the news needs of foreigners in Turkey.
Well-known foreign correspondents who for years have been working in Turkey for influential media organizations and publications such as CNN, Le Monde, The Wall Street Journal, The Daily Telegraph and the Los Angeles Times, including Andrew Finkel, Hugh Pope, Nicole Pope and Suzanne Swan, will also make an important contribution to Today's Zaman. The news crews of Zaman and the Cihan News Agency in Turkey and abroad will contribute special news to Today's Zaman.
It is better to finish here and let you meet our editorial staff and authors on these two pages.
The pillars of Today's Zaman
Emrah Ülker, Managing Editor
After covering for several years in his journalistic career a great range of issues from diplomacy to health, politics to sports, Ülker will soon join Today's Zaman team from New York as a managing editor. He worked for years in Ankara as a political correspondent and for seven years as the bureau chief of Zaman in New York.
She has covered Turkish foreign policy issues on a day-to-day basis for the Turkish Daily News as an Ankara-based diplomatic correspondent and editor since the late 1990s. She is now a managing editor at Today's Zaman, focusing mostly, but not necessarily solely, on politics and diplomacy.
Helen P. Betts, Chief Copy Editor
She has worked as a copy editing chief for the past 10 years in Turkey, Japan and the United States. A seven-year resident of Ankara but currently residing in Washington, D.C., she has also written numerous articles on life, culture and travel in Turkey and around the region and will be an occasional contributor to various pages of Today's Zaman.
İbrahim Türkmen, Business Editor
Türkmen is a former Treasury specialist at Kuwait Turk Bank. He was an assistant economy editor at Zaman newspaper just before joining the Today's Zaman team and is now in charge of the newspaper's business pages.
Okan Udo Bassey, Managing Editor
He is actually the former Udo Steven Bassey, a familiar name in Turkish and international media circles for over two decades. Okan, the foreign and sports editor for 22 years at the Turkish Daily News, will be sharing his insight with Today's Zaman readers as the managing editor in charge of foreign news and sports.
Yavuz Güllük, News Coordinator
A vibrant and versatile journalist who spent several years in daily Zaman's foreign news section as an assistant editor, Güllük manages the flow of daily news items as the news coordinator at Today's Zaman. He is also in charge of the domestic news and features sections of the newspaper.
Yonca Poyraz Doğan, Diplomatic and Political News Editor
For six years at Voice of America in Washington, D.C., she was an international broadcaster covering a range of issues from diplomacy and politics to environment and civil society for Turkish and English audiences. A graduate in mass communication, she also has a master's degree in communication from Texas Tech University.
Ankara team: Ready for the challenge
Today's Zaman's Ankara bureau is energetically committed to providing a deeper understanding of Turkish politics and foreign policy for Today's Zaman readers. Ankara Representative and columnist Kerim Balci (R) will head a strong team of senior journalists: Lale Sariibrahimoğlu (not seen in the photo) will chase news stories and offer valuable, in-depth analyses on defense and diplomacy issues in addition to writing regular columns; Ayşe Karabat (second R) will pen both a Sunday column and story news and features on life in Turkey; Ali Aslan Kiliç (L), a senior correspondent on politics and international relations, will offer analyses and interviews on parliamentary politics and diplomacy; and senior parliamentary correspondent Ercan Yavuz (second L) will report on issues of domestic politics.
Today's Zaman Team
1) Fatma Demirelli, Managing Editor
2) Helen P. Betts, Chief Copy Editor
3) Bülent Keneş, Editor-in-Chief
4) Okan Udo Bassey, Managing Editor
5) Yonca Poyraz-Doğan, Diplomatic News Editor
6) Nurettin Aslantaş, Chief Graphic Designer
7) Bülent Ilgaz, Page Designer
8) İbrahim Kaplan, Page Designer
9) İbrahim Zengin, Page Designer
10) Fahrija Bilcevic, Reporter
11) Pinar Vurucu, Reporter
12) Şemsi Açikgöz, Layout Director
13) Mustafa Sağlam, Design Director
14) Fevzi Yazici, Art Director
15) Sacha Güney, Copy Editor
16) İsmail Kocabiyik, Reporter
17) Yavuz Güllük, News Coordinator
18) Selim Şimşiroğlu, Layout Advisor
19) Fatma Dişli, Reporter
20) Ömer Çolakoğlu, Reporter
21) David Helleman, Copy Editor
22) Faruk Can, Reporter
23) Nicole Özturan, Copy Editor
24) İbrahim Türkmen, Business News Editor
25) Adnan Demir, Reporter
26) Hamdi Ali Serdar, Reporter
27) Gülnur Kiliçoğlu, Reporter
28) Ayşegül Güvenilir, Page Designer
29) Fethullah Akpinar, Page Designer
30) Scott Michael Rank, Copy Editor
31) İsmail Özcan, Page Designer
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