As today's world turns into a battleground for global powers to establish their hegemony, terrorism, in all of its forms, is being used as a serious tool by those same global powers.

With changing tactics from terrorists, terrorism needs the media to exist and spread its message more than ever in an age of communication, and vice versa, the media needs terrorism to provide images of violence to increase the media's ratings and circulation.

Ruthless competition between media institutions contributes to the goal of terrorist organizations. A so-called "symbiotic relationship between the media and terrorist organizations" is being mentioned in academic studies conducted by Western researchers. Each terrorist attack reported by the media is followed by another one, according to a study by Columbia University, based on the news reports from The New York Times about terrorist acts over the last 20 years.

And Turkey's leading figures in the security bureaucracy are questioning the role of media reports in the continuation of PKK terrorism over the last 40 years.

"If the media had reported more responsibly, avoiding exaggeration, would PKK terrorism have been able to continue for such a long time?," is a critical question posed by senior security bureaucrats.

During a panel discussion organized last week in Ankara by the UMED (International Media and Information Association), representatives of different media organizations discussed the relationship between the media and terrorism.

Deputy Prime Minister Numan Kurtulmuş spoke at the opening of the symposium, drawing attention to the media's responsibilities regarding the rules of journalism vis-a-vis the reporting of terrorist acts.

Fadime Özkan from the Turkish daily Star, Fatih Atik from the A Haber news station, Batuhan Yaşar from TGRT TV, Ercan Gürses from Reuters and me, a former journalist, were the panelists at the discussion moderated by Melik Yiğitel from the 24 TV station.

All the participants referred to the importance of media self-determination to prevent terrorist propaganda via the media.

Turkey has been the target of various terrorist organizations for years and recently a consortium of terrorist organizations conducted regular attacks against Turkey.

At such a momentous moment, the media should take responsible steps in order to not become an instrument for terrorists.

The right of the public to be informed about the developments should not be replaced by the terrorists' propaganda. Criticism against Turkey regarding press freedom is seen as covert support for the aims of terrorist groups such as the PKK and the Gülenist Terror Group (FETÖ).

Turkey passed through the biggest terrorist attack in its history on the night of July 15 when the Gülenists attempted a coup and the media reacted with honor against the coup, and thus contributed a lot to the protection of democracy in the country.

However, in a country that has passed through regular coup attempts roughly every 10 years, the media should also avoid becoming an instrument that conveys subliminal messages that will be interpreted as a "threat to the democratically elected leader and government of the country."

The standards of democracy in a country which have been increased by the people and their leader following resistance against the coup attempt should be respected by the media.

The media should be a part of a society that defends the standards of democracy and leaves behind the old habits of devastated democratic standards.