Socialist Opposition and the Press during the Transition to Multi-Party Politics: The Case of Gerçek Newspaper

Abstract

This article examines Türkiye’s transition to a multi-party-political system from a socialist perspective through an analysis of Gerçek, a newspaper published in 1946 as the ideological organ of the Socialist Party of Türkiye (TSP). The study aims to reveal how the newspaper interpreted the political, economic, and social conditions of the period and articulated a socialist critique of the emerging multi-party order. Using the historical materialist method, the article analyzes the newspaper along three main dimensions: its criticism of the Republican People’s Party (CHP) government, the TSP’s political program and organizational approach, and its treatment of the problems faced by the working class. The findings demonstrate that the 1946 electoral process cannot be understood solely through the rivalry between the CHP and the Democrat Party, as socialist opposition also constituted an important political actor. Gerçek criticized electoral irregularities, anti-democratic practices, and the class character of the state while discussing political power through Gramsci’s concept of hegemony. The newspaper’s reports and interviews, particularly with coal miners in Zonguldak, also exposed workers’ living and working conditions, highlighting its role as both an ideological publication and a voice for labor.