The International Children’s Media Summit, hosted by Türkiye’s public broadcaster TRT at the Haliç Congress Center in Istanbul, convened academics, psychologists and media professionals to examine children’s engagement with media in the digital age from a family-centered perspective.
The event, which was organized on Saturday, focused on the quality of digital content for children and the role of families in guiding media use. Sessions addressed the effects of the digital world on children, debates over screen time and challenges in producing child-focused content.
Speakers repeatedly stressed the need for strong parental involvement in children’s interactions with media.
The summit opened with remarks by First Lady Emine Erdoğan, who highlighted the importance of centering families in conversations about children and media.
Erdoğan said protecting children from harm and ensuring a healthy environment is a fundamental responsibility of adults.
“I am sure the messages conveyed here will serve a better future for Türkiye and the world,” she said, adding that the summit seeks to offer solutions “that will help families who feel trapped in the troubled world of digitalization.”
She rejected labels that describe younger generations as “digital natives” and adults as “digital immigrants.” The digital world, she said, “is one we built - its foundation and structure were laid by us. We cannot stand by while new generations get lost in its labyrinths.”
Erdoğan also called on parents to reflect on their own habits. “We are the ones who digitize children’s lives from the moment they are born,” she said. She criticized the widespread sharing of children’s private moments online, warning that it creates a permanent digital footprint and undermines their “right to be forgotten.”
“Privacy is becoming increasingly blurred,” she said. “Even under the same roof, everyone is lost in the world on their own screen. Digital culture forces us into constant, boundaryless communication.”
Erdoğan said daily screen time in Türkiye exceeds six hours and that people check their phones around 100 times per day. “As long as adults keep their heads buried in screens, children will follow the same path,” she said. “Strong families are what will protect us from the negative effects of digital transformation.”
TRT Director General Mehmet Zahid Sobacı said the summit’s theme - “Children’s Media in the Digital Age: Empowering Families, Building Values” - reflects TRT’s aim to help build a media environment that supports children’s cognitive, emotional and moral development.
Sobacı said children remain the greatest victims of genocide, war, hunger and poverty around the world. He warned of identity erosion caused by digital content and said there is a “serious crisis” in children’s media, especially online.
“In children’s media, ideological codes and messages hidden behind entertainment are being systematically normalized,” he said. “Global content cartels expose our children to misinformation, cultural alienation, value erosion and cyberbullying.”
