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Turkey's President Harnesses Social Media To Help Quell Attempted Coup

Published July 19, 2016 at 12:11 PM EDT

Last Friday, as a coup attempt was underway in Turkey, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan took to social media to ask his supporters to resist the soldiers mounting the coup. Observers note the irony of Erdogan calling into a TV station using FaceTime to address the nation when he has traditionally clamped down on social media.

Here & Now’s Meghna Chakrabarti takes a closer look at the role of social media in times of unrest today with Robert Mackey, senior writer for The Intercept.

Guest

Robert Mackey, senior writer for The Intercept. He tweets @RobertMackey.

Copyright 2021 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.

Clothes and weapons belonging to soldiers involved in the coup attempt that have now surrendered lie on the ground abandoned on the Bosphorus bridge on July 16, 2016, Istanbul,Turkey. Istanbul's bridges across the Bosphorus, the strait separating the European and Asian sides of the city, have been closed to traffic.Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has denounced an army coup attempt, that has left atleast 90 dead 1154 injured in overnight clashes in Istanbul and Ankara. (Photo by Gokhan Tan/Getty Images)
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Clothes and weapons belonging to soldiers involved in the coup attempt that have now surrendered lie on the ground abandoned on the Bosphorus bridge on July 16, 2016, Istanbul,Turkey. Istanbul's bridges across the Bosphorus, the strait separating the European and Asian sides of the city, have been closed to traffic.Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has denounced an army coup attempt, that has left atleast 90 dead 1154 injured in overnight clashes in Istanbul and Ankara. (Photo by Gokhan Tan/Getty Images)