Turkey's Export of TV Shows Also Fuels Tourism
2024-07-22
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1Turkey has become a leading exporter of television shows in recent years.
2Millions of people are watching Turkish TV dramas known as Dizi.
3Many of the shows involve the nation's famous historical and cultural places.
4Experts say the success of the television dramas has created a billion-dollar industry that continues to expand.
5Between 2020 and 2023, demand for Turkish TV series increased by 184 percent.
6That number comes from Los Angeles-based research company Parrot Analytics.
7Izzet Pinto is chief of the Turkish media company Global Agency.
8"We reach over 400 million viewers every night around the world," he said.
9Global Agency exports Turkish dramas to world markets.
10Pinto noted, "The soft power we create with Turkish dramas cannot be even compared to what could be done in politics."
11The Turkish drama Deli Yurek was the first to be exported.
12Turkey sent it to Kazakhstan in 2001.
13But it was the love story series called Gumus that brought fame to Turkish dizis.
14The story is about a traditional woman who must adapt to life in the city.
15Gumus grew hugely popular in the Middle East.
16In 2006, viewers in Europe's southeastern Balkans area enjoyed A Thousand and One Nights, a series based on Middle Eastern folktales.
17The stories were set in modern-day Istanbul.
18Turkish TV also produced the show Magnificent Century, a popular historical drama based on the life of Ottoman Sultan Suleyman the Magnificent.
19Turkey was once an importer of Latin American TV dramas known as telenovelas.
20Now, it is exporting TV shows to Latin American countries.
21In 2018, Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro visited the set of the Turkish drama Resurrection: Ertugrul.
22Haley Uganadi founded a website for fans of Turkish TV series called Dizilah.
23About 1.5 million people from the United States, Canada, Greece, India and Pakistan visit her website monthly.
24Uganadi said the popularity of the dramas comes from their subjects.
25She said they are about family, friendship and love and usually involve rich people in Istanbul or historical stories.
26Uganadi said the shows offer "something for everyone," and added, "I see reflections of my mom, myself and my siblings" in them.
27Pinto of Global Agency agrees that Turkish dramas are right for everybody.
28"There is no nudity, no cursing or bad words, not much hate," he said, "So, it becomes watchable for the family."
29As Turkey's industry grows, it is expanding the themes of its series.
30For example, the series Red Roses explores issues affecting a family that is culturally Western and a fictional Islamic brotherhood.
31During a recent period between filming, actor Ozcan Deniz told the Associated Press that diversification is important for industry growth.
32He said, "Countries that were not able to transform (into) a different genre are now lagging behind in the export of series."
33He added, "Turkey has now caught this momentum, but if it cannot diversify, if it cannot also tell different things, it will end somewhere."
34Resurrection: Ertugrul is an example of the growing success of Turkish series.
35Mehmet Bozdag is a producer and writer.
36He said the first show of the series had over 157 million views on the Urdu language YouTube channel of Turkish state broadcaster TRT.
37Another series, Foundation: Osman, was broadcast in over 110 countries.
38I'm Mario Ritter, Jr.
1Turkey has become a leading exporter of television shows in recent years. 2Millions of people are watching Turkish TV dramas known as Dizi. Many of the shows involve the nation's famous historical and cultural places. 3Experts say the success of the television dramas has created a billion-dollar industry that continues to expand. Between 2020 and 2023, demand for Turkish TV series increased by 184 percent. That number comes from Los Angeles-based research company Parrot Analytics. 4Izzet Pinto is chief of the Turkish media company Global Agency. "We reach over 400 million viewers every night around the world," he said. Global Agency exports Turkish dramas to world markets. Pinto noted, "The soft power we create with Turkish dramas cannot be even compared to what could be done in politics." 5The Turkish drama Deli Yurek was the first to be exported. Turkey sent it to Kazakhstan in 2001. But it was the love story series called Gumus that brought fame to Turkish dizis. The story is about a traditional woman who must adapt to life in the city. Gumus grew hugely popular in the Middle East. 6In 2006, viewers in Europe's southeastern Balkans area enjoyed A Thousand and One Nights, a series based on Middle Eastern folktales. The stories were set in modern-day Istanbul. Turkish TV also produced the show Magnificent Century, a popular historical drama based on the life of Ottoman Sultan Suleyman the Magnificent. 7Turkey was once an importer of Latin American TV dramas known as telenovelas. Now, it is exporting TV shows to Latin American countries. In 2018, Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro visited the set of the Turkish drama Resurrection: Ertugrul. 8Haley Uganadi founded a website for fans of Turkish TV series called Dizilah. About 1.5 million people from the United States, Canada, Greece, India and Pakistan visit her website monthly. 9Uganadi said the popularity of the dramas comes from their subjects. She said they are about family, friendship and love and usually involve rich people in Istanbul or historical stories. 10Uganadi said the shows offer "something for everyone," and added, "I see reflections of my mom, myself and my siblings" in them. 11Pinto of Global Agency agrees that Turkish dramas are right for everybody. "There is no nudity, no cursing or bad words, not much hate," he said, "So, it becomes watchable for the family." 12As Turkey's industry grows, it is expanding the themes of its series. For example, the series Red Roses explores issues affecting a family that is culturally Western and a fictional Islamic brotherhood. 13During a recent period between filming, actor Ozcan Deniz told the Associated Press that diversification is important for industry growth. 14He said, "Countries that were not able to transform (into) a different genre are now lagging behind in the export of series." He added, "Turkey has now caught this momentum, but if it cannot diversify, if it cannot also tell different things, it will end somewhere." 15Resurrection: Ertugrul is an example of the growing success of Turkish series. Mehmet Bozdag is a producer and writer. He said the first show of the series had over 157 million views on the Urdu language YouTube channel of Turkish state broadcaster TRT. Another series, Foundation: Osman, was broadcast in over 110 countries. 16I'm Mario Ritter, Jr. 17Robert Badendieck reported this story for the Associated Press. Mario Ritter, Jr. adapted it for VOA Learning English. 18______________________________________________ 19Words in This Story 20drama -n. a story about a serious or realistic subject 21soft power -n. influence among nations that is not based on military strength but on cultural and non-tangible qualities 22viewer -n. a person who watches television 23reflection -n. a similarity 24fictional -adj. something from stories that is not real 25nudity -n. the state of having no clothes on 26diversification -n. the idea of being involved in several different areas to protect against losing too much if one area fails to produce 27flourish -v. to grow and expand in health and wealth 28genre -n. (art) a specific kind of art form with certain qualities 29We want to hear from you. 30Our comment policy is here.