President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is furious. After his daughter announced the birth of her fourth child, some on social media reportedly directed insults at her and the president’s son-in-law. “Do you see why we oppose social media like YouTube, Twitter, Netflix, et cetera?” Erdogan reportedly told members of his party in a televised address, referring to the allegedly insulting tweets. “It is imperative that these channels are brought under control.”
This is rich, given not only that Erdogan and his Justice and Development Party have funded an army of trolls to hurl vile invectives at critics, but that Erdogan has signaled his approval of the tactic by attending the wedding of his favorite internet troll.
Erdogan’s stated reason for wanting to censor social media is likely a lie, however. According to Turkish interlocutors, on June 28, Erdogan arranged for a video show on YouTube with 15 or so high school students to whom he delivered advice. The students were assigned to ask Erdogan flattering questions and to express their gratitude for his leadership. It did not go as planned, as an off-camera voice was heard whispering to a student, “Come on, say we are proud of you.”
That was nothing compared to the embarrassment that followed. After the video was posted, dislikes outnumbered likes by 10-to-1. He rallied the internet trolls to support him, but when Erdogan had the YouTube video removed, there we approximately 300,000 dislikes to around only 100,000 likes. It was then that he threatened to disconnect Turkey from social media outlets not controlled by the Turkish government.
Erdogan once swore he would “raise a pious generation,” and he subsequently said his policy toward the young was to create religious youth who would take vengeance against Western values. He has not succeeded, however. Turkish polls show that about 60% of Turkish millennials oppose Erdogan despite 17 years of his indoctrination in schools, universities, and on television. The Turkish president is frustrated, and he is willing to do what all dictators who cannot win policy arguments do: repress rather than convince.
Neither Western journalists nor diplomats should play into Erdogan’s grievance trap. His dictatorial tendencies have nothing to do with family honor and everything to do with ego and ideology. Mazel tov to his daughter on the birth of her latest, but condemn Erdogan for destroying the tolerance, freedom, and economy of the society into which his grandchildren are now born.
Michael Rubin (@Mrubin1971) is a contributor to the Washington Examiner’s Beltway Confidential blog. He is a resident scholar at the American Enterprise Institute and a former Pentagon official.
