Erdoğan says globalization leads to 'cultural erosion'

ANKARA

President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has criticized globalization for fostering cultural erosion, warning against the dangers of standardization.

“Protecting wealth, pluralism and different traditions means building a bridge from the past to the past,” Erdoğan said in a speech at an arts awards ceremony organized by the Culture and Tourism Ministry on Nov. 27.

He addressed an audience that included calligraphers, miniature artists, silk carpet weavers and other traditional artisans who were honored at the event.

"Globalization has brought about cultural degeneration. Whether it is done in the name of money or ideologies, the destination of uniformization is cultural barrenness and desertification,” Erdoğan said.

"The wounds inflicted on Türkiye's cultural life by the Western mentality that looks down on its people and is disgusted with its own values and culture have still not healed. Unfortunately, the greatest damage of the cultural denial policies has been in the minds."

The president described Türkiye's cultural richness as a bridge that connects past generations with the present.

"Our people who know the European, American and Far Eastern playlists by heart, but do not even know the names of a few composers from their own history reveal the damage caused by the policies of denial that marked a certain period," he said.

"When we see our young people who know K-pop very well but are not familiar with [Turkish artists] Cem Karaca, Barış Manço, Neşet Ertaş, Kayahan and many more stars of art from these lands, we are of course worried and saddened."

Erdoğan also addressed the impact of digitalization on society, balancing optimism for artificial intelligence's potential with concerns about its effects.

"We follow the works that artificial intelligence can do and what it can achieve, sometimes with excitement and sometimes with concern,” he said, noting how consumer-driven trends in digital culture often undermine local diversity.

He praised the work of artists striving to preserve cultural heritage despite the pressures of the modern culture industry.

“We are experiencing a period when the modern culture industry attacks the cultural heritage of different societies with all its tools,” Erdoğan said. “The struggle that artists are giving these days to keep the cultural heritage and civilizational values alive is extremely valuable.”