Hidayet Karaca (b. 18 August 1963; Çankırı, Turkey ) was the general manager of the Samanyolu Media Group and chairman of the now-closed

Samanyolu TV Samanyolu TV was an international Turkish language TV station with its headquarters in Istanbul. The channel is known for its closeness to Fethullah Gülen, the leader of the Gülen movement. Samanyolu TV was previously owned by Yayıncılık A. ...

About

Born on 18 August 1963 in

Çankırı Çankırı, historically known as Gangra (Greek language, Greek: Γάγγρα), is a city in Turkey, about northeast of Ankara. It is situated about 800 m (2500 ft) above sea level. It is the seat of Çankırı Province and of Çankır ...

in Central Turkey, Karaca completed his primary, secondary and high school education in Istanbul. In 1983, he entered the Faculty of Engineering and Architecture in the Department of Mechanical Engineering at

Dokuz Eylül University Dokuz Eylül University () (DEÜ) is a Public university, public research university in İzmir, Turkey. Founded in 1982, it is organized into 18 faculties. It holds the distinction of being the first university in Turkey to implement the probl ...

in Izmir, and did his master's degree there. He completed his PhD at

Celal Bayar University Manisa Celal Bayar University or (CBU) is a public research university located in Manisa, Turkey. CBU traces its root back to 1959 as an independent sports and teachers' college in Manisa. The main campus is in Muradiye district of Manisa. Th ...

. He worked as the Aegean Region Representative of Zaman Newspaper in Izmir. Later he worked as the Ankara Representative of the same newspaper for two years. From 1999 to 2016 he worked as the General Coordinator of the Samanyolu television channel (STV). He is a member of the High Council of the Press Council, Chairman of the Board of the Television Broadcasters Association and a member of the Izmir Journalists Association.

Lawsuit

Karaca was arrested on 19 December 2014 on charges of terrorism and membership of a group that conspired against the religious group Tahşiyeciler after

Fethullah Gülen Muhammed Fethullah Gülen (27 April 1941 – 20 October 2024) was a Turkish Ulama, Muslim scholar, preacher, and leader of the Gülen movement who as of 2016 had millions of followers. Gülen was an influential Neo-Ottomanism, neo-Ottomanist, A ...

warned against them. An episode of a soap opera on Samanyolu TV also made allegations against the Tahşiveciler. On 8 June 2018, the court sentenced Hidayet Karaca to aggravated life imprisonment for "attempting to overthrow the constitutional order" via the failed coup of 15 July 2016. He is detained in

Silivri Prison Marmara Prison () or officially Marmara Penitentiaries Campus () formerly Silivri Prison is a supermax, high-security state correctional institution complex in the Silivri district of Istanbul Province in Turkey. Established in 2008, it is the c ...

Personal life

Hidayet Karaca is married and has two children.

References

Turkish journalists 1963 births Living people Journalists imprisoned in Turkey Manisa Celal Bayar University alumni {{Turkey-writer-stub