Turkish reporter defends fake interview with CNN’s Amanpour as ‘just sarcasm’
The CNN sign is seen outside its headquarters November 12, 2002 in New York City.
A Turkish reporter responded to a reprimand from CNN's Christine Amanpour about his fake interview with her by claiming the piece was satirical, according to a Twitter exchange cited by Turkey's Hurriyet.
The article in question was published by Takvim and headlined "dirty confession," featuring an "interview" in which Amanpour admits CNN was trying to destabilize Turkey through its coverage of recent events, according to The Huffington Post.
Turkey is in the midst of mass anti-government protests that the authorities say were instigated by foreign elements.
In the Takvim interview, Amanpour is quoted as saying CNN "did everything for money," said Hurriyet.
Amanpour responded to the Takvim piece on Tuesday:
The journalist responsible for the Takvim piece, Mevlüt Yüksel, reportedly tweeted back: “Hi Christiane, I am the reporter of the fake interview. Do you really think it is true… It's just sarcasm."
Takvim apparently added a tiny note at the end of the very real-looking fake Amanpour interview (got that?) clarifying that the piece was made up. Hurriyet said editors even admitting doing it to “get back at” CNN for their coverage of the Gezi Park unrest.