Some memoirs tell the story of an individual’s life; others tell the story of a country through the life of an individual. Veteran Turkish journalist Yavuz Donat’s "Off The Record," shaped by Şebnem Bursalı’s questions, belongs more closely to the second category. Published by Turkuvaz Kitap in 2019, the book is an extended interview centered on Donat’s 56-year career in journalism. Yet what makes the book valuable is not merely the story of a professional career spanning more than half a century. From the 1960s, when Donat began his career in journalism, to the time the book was published, Türkiye underwent such profound political and social transformations that recounting his professional life inevitably means recounting the country’s recent history. Indeed, the book traces a journalistic journey stretching from Adnan Menderes to Süleyman Demirel, from Turgut Özal to the Sept. 12 military coup and the Feb. 28 process.
Reading "Off The Record" simply as a conventional biography or a journalist’s memoir would be insufficient. The book also constitutes a form of oral history of Türkiye’s last half-century, narrated through politicians, elections, military coups, political crises and the human relationships underlying all these developments. After all, memoirs are inevitably shaped by what their narrators have witnessed, remembered and interpreted. Yet, it is precisely this characteristic that brings to light details that are not easily found in official documents or political history books. This is also what makes Bursalı’s interview with Donat particularly significant for understanding recent political history, as contemporary assessments of the book emphasized. As Donat himself observes in the book, “The written memory of Turkish politics is weak. Military coups. Political party closures. Party archives were sent to the SEKA Paper Mill. They were pulped and turned into paper again. What I have are the things that were not destroyed. What remains.”
Thus, the fundamental element that makes the book compelling is the way Donat’s professional career intersects with almost every major turning point in Türkiye’s recent political history. Donat began his journalism career in 1963 at the Ulus newspaper. His journalistic journey therefore encompasses an extraordinarily turbulent political period, beginning with Türkiye in the aftermath of the May 27 coup and extending through the Demirel years, March 12, Sept. 12, the Özal era, coalition governments, Feb. 28 and up to the present day. History looks somewhat different when viewed through a journalist’s memory. Conversations, encounters, friendships, tensions, coincidences and small but often highly valuable details unknown to the public emerge from behind major political developments. For this reason, the relationships established with politicians over many years of political journalism, conversations during journeys, assessments made behind closed doors and information shared during moments of crisis are particularly valuable. At the time of the book’s publication, Bursalı also drew attention to the private memories Donat had accumulated but had never previously written about, presenting the work as a collection of vivid firsthand accounts of conversations that had taken place behind closed doors over the preceding half-century. From this perspective, the book also represents, in a sense, the belated documentation of what had remained off the record for years.
"Off The Record" also offers an opportunity to observe how the relationship between politicians and journalists in our country has evolved over time. During much of Donat’s journalistic career, the relationship between politicians and journalists was different from what it is today. Long journeys, private conversations and relationships of trust built over the years allowed journalists to observe not only politicians' public faces but also their hesitations in decision-making and their human side.
Of course, what makes "Off The Record" interesting is not limited to previously unknown details about politicians or the behind-the-scenes workings of Ankara politics. Perhaps an even more distinctive characteristic of Donat’s journalism is his relationship with Anatolia. The book specifically highlights his warm relationship with Anatolia, his strong connection with people on the ground and how this close relationship translated into accurate election predictions. In Donat’s understanding of journalism, visiting cities, towns and villages, talking to people in coffeehouses, listening to shopkeepers and observing social change firsthand are central to taking the pulse of politics and interpreting political developments accurately: “You must not be bothered by the smell of the people of Anatolia. You must not look down on them. You must embrace them.” This approach becomes especially important during election periods.
In the years when public opinion surveys were not as widespread as they are today, one of the most important ways to understand what voters were thinking was to go out into the field. Donat’s observations during his travels across Anatolia before elections over many years and the remarkably accurate electoral predictions he developed on the basis of those observations became one of the distinguishing features of his journalistic identity. What matters here is not simply predicting election results correctly. Because political developments often begin to activate underlying fault lines in Anatolia before their effects become visible in Ankara, field observations make it possible to anticipate the direction in which society, and consequently politics, is evolving. This requires direct contact with people on the ground. Sitting in a city square, entering a coffeehouse, observing prices in the marketplace, listening to what shopkeepers have to say and understanding the expectations of young people can sometimes provide insights that dozens of public opinion surveys cannot offer. Although technology changes, the fundamental question of journalism remains the same: What are people actually experiencing, and what do they really think?
On the other hand, "Off The Record" also provides a valuable opportunity to reflect on journalism, which is undergoing rapid transformation today. As is well known, the ways journalists access information have changed fundamentally. Social media, digital platforms and the continuous news cycle provide journalists with a flow of data on a scale incomparable to anything in the past. It is now possible to access a politician’s statement, a political rally or developments anywhere in the world within seconds. Yet easier access to information does not necessarily mean that understanding society has become equally easy. Indeed, we may even be facing the opposite situation. As the volume of data reaches enormous proportions, the distinction between what is visible and what is actually happening (between noise and signal) becomes increasingly important. A debate that is highly visible on digital platforms may have very little resonance in society, while a grievance that is almost entirely invisible in the digital sphere may be quietly growing among broad segments of the population. Therefore, as the opportunities offered by technology expand, the importance of going out into the field may actually increase rather than diminish, making firsthand observation more essential than ever.
In short, when we read Donat’s "Off The Record," we are not merely reading the story of Donat’s life. At times, we find ourselves in a politician’s office in Ankara; at others, we accompany an election campaign or visit a city in Anatolia. We encounter the small stories and individuals behind major political events. In essence, we wander through the corridors of Türkiye’s last half-century, witnessing its social transformation, turning points, joys and sorrows.
