On non-academic conceptions of "correct" Turkish in media: Descriptive and prescriptive approaches and beyond

Abstract

As a popular subject, the use of Turkish in media has become the subject of numerous critical articles and books. Most of these studies are written by people with various professional backgrounds such as journalism, teaching, announcing, etc. and due to the lack of a linguistic perspective and methodological and theoretical basis, they may include some misconceptions. These publications, also being recommended for elementary and high school students, include highly subjective and disputable judgements, and sometimes they may lead the way for other unfruitful disputes which eventually end up in a vicious cycle. In this study, a database composed of twelve books about the improper use of Turkish published within the last decade is studied in an attempt to reveal methodological and theoretical misconceptions. My aim is to approach this type of literature critically, which may eventually contribute to the linguistic consciousness and language planning processes and also suggest new fields of inquiry for the sociolinguists.