REFLECTIONS ON TURKISH PRESS OF THE DECISION TO CONVERT HAGIA SOPHIA FROM MUSEUM INTO MOSQUE

Abstract

Istanbul is a historical city which served as the capital of three empires. Hagia Sophia is both the
hallmark of the city and one of the monuments of the world with its distinguished place. Belonging
to the Roman period, Hagia Sophia was one of the buildings of significant importance during the
Byzantine and Ottoman Empire periods. With his decision to convert it into museum in 1934,
Atatürk gave an example of cultural embrace for Hagia Sophia. However, this decision has been a
debated issue for years. On July 10, 2020, it was decided to convert the status of Hagia Sophia back
from museum to mosque. In this paper, newspapers with different publication policies in Turkish
press have been chosen and the way in which these newspapers evaluate the decision taken
regarding the status of Hagia Sophia in their related news and articles have been analyzed.