Academic Social Media Earnings Evaluated Under Law No. 657

Opinion Sent to YÖK In a 2024 memorandum, the Presidency's General Secretariat informed the Council of Higher Education (YÖK) that earnings from YouTube and other digital platforms by academics could be evaluated under Article 28 of Law No.
657, the State Civil Servants Law.
The memo reflects a search for clarity on how academic income should be recorded in official accounts.
Ministry of Treasury and Finance Review Following an examination by the Ministry of Treasury and Finance's Revenue Administration, a view was forwarded to YÖK on September 2.
The review aimed to determine whether academic earnings align with the status of a state civil servant.
Reactions from Academics After the view reached universities, some academics stopped or removed their YouTube broadcasts to avoid potential disciplinary proceedings.
“YouTube plays an important role in disseminating academic knowledge to a wide audience.
However, I had to stop my broadcasts because of this decision.” – Prof.
Altay Tayfun Özcan, History Department, Dumlupınar University.
“Pulling back from digital platforms can create problems for knowledge production.” – Dr.
Süleyman Tekir, History Department, Akdeniz University.
Prof.
Oğuz Ergin, Computer Engineering Department, TOBB ETÜ, noted that there are about 146 academics in Turkey with YouTube channels.
He urged universities to establish “Science Communication Offices” and support academics in producing scientific content on digital platforms.
Legal expert Avukat M.
emphasized the need to clarify the legal boundaries between a public servant’s duties and content creation on digital platforms.