The spread of hate speech through insults, distortion, hostility or symbolization in printed and visual social media content against millions of refugees in Türkiye is further deepening prejudices and creating social unrest among communities, according to a Turkish expert.

The provocative, racist and discriminatory language used in news stories – especially in headlines – triggers animosity among people who use it to justify attacks against vulnerable groups in the country, the head of the Journalism Department at Istanbul University, professor Dr. Ali Murat Vural, said during an exclusive interview with Anadolu Agency (AA) on Friday.

Over the last 25-30 years, there has been a significant surge in hate speech in news stories, Vural pointed out. "The concern here is the unwillingness to recognize and accept the other and the ambiguity that if the other should be recognized given the fear that 'he or she might take away what’s mine' if emerged as the majority. The root cause of this problem is a lack of communication. The individual label people as ‘the other’ and begins generating fear when they don't know the person they are communicating with," he explained.

Maintaining that hate speech is generated in various ways, the professor said: "The hate speech in media is conjured continuously and indiscriminate of the other’s sex, religion, language, ethnic identity, nationality or social status. This is derogatory, humiliating rhetoric that looks down upon other people and entirely negates their points of view. It’s foul and fatal," Vural asserted.

Social perceptions are shaped by the "how, where and what way concepts are used," Vural said, emphasizing that the audience subjected to hate speech full of derogatory, humiliating remarks, even if they initially disagree, comes to embrace that rhetoric after a while because of being constantly present in an environment that uses the same rhetoric and out of fear of losing their relevance.

"There are two fundamental elements that create hate speech," he pointed out. "First is the fear that one’s comfort zone will be disrupted and the second one is a feeling of power – the discourse one brings about by demonstrating one’s power over the other in a space shared with others," he added.

Explaining that a new ‘other’ was created by the media through news coverage, Vural pointed to Syrians and Afghans fleeing war zones to seek refuge in Türkiye as the "new other."

"There is an intense expression of hate toward refugees in our country. The 'other' for us today are the refugees and foreigners," he added.

Headlines about refugees are fabricated through exaggerated charges and distortion every day, Vural said, highlighting headlines like "'Forbidden love' motive behind the murder of Syrian mother-daughter" and "Syrian bride absconds with wedding jewels" as examples.

Individuals or certain instances are used to form negative generalizations about a certain community, Vural added. "Journalists who come up with these headlines actually want to define an identity. They place the Syrian woman or Syrian man into a position, saying ‘This person is that.’ Therefore, they create a Syrian image in the public consciousness by associating that Syrian individual with that criminal element," he explained.

"If we were to ask the journalist, they would say they were using their journalistic reflexes. I know their response but we never teach them this in journalism," he noted. Calling out to reporters and journalists, the professor suggested: "Write your story in a way that will be intriguing while using your journalistic reflex but don’t crush someone’s identity or violate their personal rights. Put your ethical values first then knead your story in that framework."

The refugee crisis is one of the biggest problems of recent years, Vural added. "If today's world, starting with Türkiye, is facing a refugee crisis and Syrians or Afghans are facing the consequences, making news by constantly associating, labeling them (refugees) would be devastating for these people. The journalist must first realize that ‘If I say this under these circumstances, I would create a label, and I don’t have a right to do that,’" he stressed.

The professor said hate speech in the media was not confined to people of a certain ethnicity or gender and was once widespread among people from other countries. "It is not about a nation, it is about humanity," he said, pointing out the elements that contribute toward hate speech, highlighting headlines including derogatory terms such as "pervy Afghan."

"You cannot label all lawyers, teachers or doctors in the same way if one among them do wrong but unfortunately you do this for refugees," he criticized.