Will Turkey’s currency crisis hurt Erdogan? Here’s what a new poll shows.

Source:Washington Post Date:25Aug2018

A new  poll shows currency collapse is hurting AKP, but its total control over the media is mitigating the damage–for now!

Erdogan’s ability to deflect blame for this crisis is extraordinary. The president has repeatedly claimed that the crisis is caused by an “economic war” that is being waged against Turkey by “foreign adversaries.” A key reason the public has accepted those arguments is their lack of access to contrary arguments — a function of the government’s near-complete control over the media. However, the minority of Turks who get most of their news from the Internet and social media, and who therefore hear alternative views on the matter, were considerably more likely to blame the government for the depreciation (47 percent) than they were to blame foreign governments (34 percent).