Newsletter
Associate Professor İrem İnceoğlu, our Dean Professor Melis Behlil, and former faculty member Dr. Özen Baş presented their research titled “From Customer to Political Subject and Cultural Negotiator: Exploring Streaming Audiences in Türkiye” at the international conference Beyond the Audience: Rethinking Participation and Power in the Age of Data Capitalism, held in Rome, sharing their work with the global academic community.
Lecturer Ayşegül Bulut Atalay’s new podcast, Dijital Zihin, is now live. The podcast features conversations on algorithms, the relationship between technology and culture, and the pursuit of “more responsible technology.” Listen here: https://open.spotify.com/show/0cYqy2t35XoY9FYoq8QjPt?si=be1e73f2465a483a
The Department of New Media and Communication has established new partnerships with İçerikPlus, Hayal Akademisi, Digital Gateway, Fayn Studio, Bianet, and IPS Communication Foundation to further strengthen internship opportunities for our students. In addition, we have renewed our collaborations with Pikan Agency and Olmadık Projeler, expanding professional pathways and enhancing hands-on learning experiences.
Lecturer Ayşegül Bulut Atalay’s article titled “Marketing’s New Responsibility in the Age of Artificial Intelligence: Let Humanity Not Diminish as Technology Grows” has been published. https://incturkiye.com/makaleler/yapay-zeka-caginda-pazarlamanin-yeni-sorumlulugu-teknoloji-buyurken-insan-kuculmesin
Under the advisory of Dr. Onur Sesigür, Assistant Professor at the Department of New Media and Communication, the student team “Wizards & Whispers” (Mete Berk Kumaş, Öykü Beliz Öztürk, Ege Anter, and İrem Özgür Bayman) has secured support through the YEP InIdea program. The team successfully produced a New Year’s project at FabriKHAS, leveraging advanced XR and Motion Capture technologies.
On December 7, The Kadir Has University New Media Club successfully hosted the first-ever Media All Awards. The ceremony brought together industry professionals and students to honor the most influential names and projects in the Turkish media and communication landscape, fostering a strong bridge between the academy and the media sector. Demonstrating an extraordinary level of engagement, the award recipients were determined by a massive university-wide voting process, reaching a staggering 600,000 student votes.
Watch the full event here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UUHlr–VOx8
The Department of New Media and Communication hosted the AltMedya event on November 13. The event brought together various alternative news platforms, journalists, and academics, featuring a series of insightful panels and hands-on workshops that addressed the critical shifts in today’s news environment. Participants explored the current state of the digital journalism ecosystem, identifying the primary obstacles faced by stakeholders and brainstorming collaborative ways to overcome them
On November 12, Dr. Onur Sesigür, Assistant Professor at the Department of New Media and Communication, delivered a keynote address at Frankfurt Goethe University as part of the conference “From Loops to Streams: Repetition and Attention in the Recording Age.” His talk, “Personal Playlisting: Curating Repetition,” examined the transition from mixtapes to streaming playlists, highlighting how curated repetition functions as a tool for human agency in the digital era. Dr. Sesigür’s insights offered a deep dive into the shifting dynamics of music consumption and the emotional significance of personal curation.
Gözde Cöbek, Chair of New Media and Communication, participated in the 2nd International Media and Cultural Studies Conference, held on November 5-6, 2025. Cöbek presented her research titled “Choosing a Partner in the Age of Dating Apps: An Affective Analysis of ‘Swiping’ Practices of Users in Turkey.” Her presentation offered an in-depth analysis of the emotional and sociocultural dynamics surrounding digital dating platforms, specifically focusing on how the “swiping” mechanism shapes user experiences and partner selection processes within the Turkish context.
Lecturer Ayşegül Bulut Atalay delivered a conference titled “The Future of Agriculture Transformed by Artificial Intelligence” at the invitation of the Faculty of Agriculture at Düzce University.
The article titled “Countering Authoritarian Populism with Populism in a Polarized Turkey,” authored by Way, L.C.S., McLoughlin, S., and İnceoğlu, I. (2025), has been published in the Journal of Language and Politics. https://doi.org/10.1075/jlp.25152.way
Lecturer Ayşegül Bulut Atalay delivered a conference titled “The Hidden Game of Digital Marketing” at the invitation of the Acıbadem University Entrepreneurship Club.
The Department of New Media and Communication hosted the 13th New Media Conference on October 22 under the theme “New Media and Games.” The event brought together industry leaders Burak Şahin (Burak Oyunda), Dr. Fasih Sayın (THQ Nordic), Oğuz Türkekul (Vuyv Games), Meral Didar Alğaç and Zeynep Burcu Kaya Alpan (Games for Change), along with distinguished academics Dr. Selen Çakır Bedir (Boğaziçi University) and Prof. Ayşe Bilge Selçuk (DevelopMental). The conference opened a space for discussion on the evolution of the gaming industry and its cultural and psychological impacts. Serving as an important platform for synergy between academia and industry, the event featured insightful panels on the future of games and gaming culture.
Assistant Professor Onur Sesigür was a guest on the episode titled “Streaming Ecosystem, Algorithms, and Digital Platform Debates” of the program Ben Devri, broadcast on Medyascope. The episode addressed the current structure of the streaming ecosystem, the impact of algorithms on audience behavior, and how digital platforms are transforming the media industry. Dr. Sesigür also shared his insights on the reshaping of power dynamics among content creators, platforms, and audiences within an increasingly digitalized media environment.
Now in its second year, the “Adı: Kadın” Short Story Competition features our department’s Lecturer Pınar İlkiz Demir as a jury member. Aiming to raise the visibility of women-focused literature, the competition encourages young writers to produce original work.
An AI-generated teaser has been released for the story “Kedili Kadın” from our lecturer Pınar İlkiz Demir’s book Soğan Doğradığın Çıplak Eller.
As of September 2025, Büşra Sağlam joined our department as a Research Assistant. A graduate of the New Media Department at Kadir Has University in 2018, she received her M.A. in Communication Studies from the same university in 2021 and is currently pursuing her Ph.D. in Sociology at Koç University.
The book “Music Streaming Around the World,” edited by David Hesmondhalgh and published by University of California Press, includes a chapter titled “If Streaming Doesn’t Pay the Bills, Will Advertising?” by our faculty member Onur Sesigür, PhD.
https://www.amazon.com/Music-Streaming-around-World-Hesmondhalgh/dp/0520422597
Our lecturer İsmail Hakkı Polat made evaluations on ‘Pricing in Cryptocurrency Markets’ as a guest on CNBC-e screens on July 17, 2025.
At the Graduation Ceremony held at Volkswagen Arena on June 28, 2025, we bid farewell to our 12th term graduates who successfully completed their academic journey. We would also like to thank our esteemed academics who supported them with effort, knowledge and inspiration.
As of May 2025, Livanur Damra Bakmaz has started to work as a New Media Laboratory Specialist at Kadir Has University Faculty of Communication. Bakmaz, who graduated from Kadir Has University New Media Department with the first rank, is currently continuing her education in the Communication Sciences master’s program of the same faculty.
Prof. Dr. Gözde Cöbek’s project titled “The Phenomenon of Singlehood: Types of Singleness in Turkey and Examination of Adults’ Experiences of Singleness” has been entitled to be supported within the scope of TUBITAK 3501 – Career Development Program.
Lecturer Özer Bereket’s article titled “Auteur Perspective on Reha Erdem’s Cinema” was published in the 6(14) issue of the International Journal of Communication and Art.
Our lecturer Ayşegül Bulut Atalay was selected as one of the Product & Service Awards Judging Committee members for the 2025 Stevie Awards for Technology Excellence.
Prof. Dr. Aylin Sunam Audry, our faculty member, has been awarded the TÜBİTAK/BİDEB 2219 Postdoctoral Research Fellowship Abroad. Audry will continue her academic research in France for one year starting from January 2025.
Prof. Dr. Onur Sesigür was awarded the Faculty of Communication Education Award for his outstanding contributions to the successful execution of the NMD221 Game Design Principles course he taught in the Fall 2024 semester.
Prof. Dr. Lecturer. Prof. Dr. Gözde Cöbek became a member of the British Sociological Association (BSA) in June 2024 and joined the editorial board of the journal Sociological Research Online.
Prof. Dr. Lecturer. Prof. Dr. Aylin Sunam Audry joined the editorial board of the Balkan Communication Journal (DOAJ).
Our lecturer İsmail Hakkı Polat gave an interview titled “How will the Crypto Asset Law Shape the Future?” as a guest on TRT on August 9, 2024.
Prof. Dr. Assist. Prof. Dr. Gözde Cöbek gave an interview to Birgün on gender equality in online dating apps and the transformation of love in consumer culture.