Opposition lawmakers in Turkey accused Google of undermining press freedom by using opaque algorithms that sharply reduce traffic to independent news sites, during a parliamentary committee session on Thursday, the T24 news website reported.
The Turkish Parliament’s Digital Media Committee convened on Thursday to hear Google representatives discuss the platform’s recent algorithm changes and their impact on independent journalism in Turkey.
Opposition lawmakers criticized Google for creating a de facto monopoly and claimed the company’s algorithm updates have devastated the visibility and revenue of critical media outlets.
Committee chair Hüseyin Yayman opened the session by noting widespread concern that Google’s algorithm lacks transparency and has caused significant traffic drops for news outlets.
Yayman said the failure to clearly explain how the algorithm works had eroded public trust and fueled the perception that access to information is being curtailed by a private company.
He added that algorithm changes have led to a major decline in visibility for Turkish news websites and intensified fears that Google is infringing on the public’s right to information.
Google Search spokesperson Johannes Müller delivered a presentation defending the updates, saying they aim to reflect evolving web content and user expectations.
Müller said Google’s updates are not designed to manipulate results or promote any political agenda and insisted they are consistent with the company’s mission to improve search quality.
He noted that Google implemented nearly 5,000 updates to its search algorithms in 2024, adding that the company shares information about major changes publicly.
Müller said Google’s updates are not country-specific and that the goal is to improve the search experience globally.
Tuncay Özkan, a lawmaker from the main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP), accused Google of abusing its dominant position to silence news organizations.
Özkan said formerly high-traffic news websites have vanished from search results following algorithm changes and described Google’s behavior as coercive and harmful to the media ecosystem.
In response Google’s director of public policy, Tolga Sobacı, said the company has no incentive to promote or suppress specific websites.
Sobacı said algorithm updates are continuous and not designed with the goal of harming or favoring any publisher and added that website operators must adapt to the evolving digital environment.
Sobacı emphasized that Google supports independent media through educational programs and training, helping them compete with larger organizations.
CHP lawmaker Okan Konuralp said Turkey is experiencing a media crisis directly linked to Google’s actions, citing the shutdown of the Gazete Duvar news website and warnings from 12 others about the effects of declining web traffic.
Konuralp challenged Google for failing to engage in dialogue with respected Turkish publishers, accusing the company of ignoring the economic and editorial consequences of its algorithm changes.
He said the traffic drops have been so severe that they resemble a “storm” rather than a normal fluctuation and that Google has shown little concern.
CHP lawmaker Utku Çakırözer said data from the T24 news outlet shows that traffic and revenue losses after recent updates have crippled smaller outlets.
He said the October 2024 and January 2025 updates led to a 33 to 35 percent drop in users and over 40 percent in page views for some sites.
Çakırözer said the collapse in traffic led to steep revenue losses from both Google ads and premium advertisers and caused outlets to lose public advertising funds distributed by the state-run Press Advertising Agency.
He warned that this combination of financial blows is forcing small newsrooms to shut down or cut staff, also naming Gazete Duvar as one outlet shut down due to what he called a Google “embargo.”
Çakırözer also said independent news outlets in Turkey have no clear point of contact at Google and accused the company of eroding the last spaces for independent journalism in the country.
Google attorney Gönenç Gürkaynak said algorithm changes can produce volatility that disproportionately affects certain publishers.
Müller added that Google monitors user feedback and tries to understand why publishers are experiencing sudden traffic declines.
He said the aim is to improve search quality, not restore prior traffic levels, and that adjustments may not return sites to their previous performance.
Müller stressed that the algorithm is too complex to manipulate for or against specific actors and that Google does not design updates to benefit or harm any particular outlet.
He said the company cannot alter policies or documentation to favor specific political or commercial interests.
The meeting ended with several lawmakers expressing frustration at what they called vague and unconvincing answers from Google representatives.