Melis Alphan (Melis Çelebi; born 1978 in İzmir), is a Turkish journalist and author known for her women's rights activism and her fashion journalism.[1]
Melis Alphan | |
|---|---|
 Melis Alphan | |
| Born | 1978 |
| Citizenship | Turkish |
| Education | American Collegiate Institute |
| Occupation | Journalist |
Education
Following her graduation from the American College Institute in Izmir, she studied Fashion at the London College of Fashion from where she earned a BSc.[2] Following she studied for a while at the Fashion Institute of Technology in New York.[2] In 2001 she returned to Turkey and initiated her journalistic career at the Vizyon magazine.[2] The same year she began working at the newspaper Radikal and by 2003 she received a job at the Milliyet newspaper.[3] In 2009 she started to work at the Hürriyet newspaper, for which she reported for 9 years.[3] She wrote articles on women rights, fashion amongst other issues and with time she became one of the few female journalists to write an own column in a Turkish newspaper.[4] In 2018 she was a member of the jury for the Metin Göktepe journalism award.[5] In 2019 she published the book I Will – Inspiring Life Stories.[4]
Legal prosecution
In November 2020 an investigation into an Instagram post[6] of her about the Kurdish new year celebrations in Diyarbakır in 2015 was initiated.[6][7] In the photograph in question, a flag of the Kurdistan Workers' Party, with which the Turkish Government at the time was holding peace negotiations was also to be seen.[8] The prosecution demanded a prison sentence for up to 7 years and 6 months.[8] She was acquitted on May 21, 2021.[9]
Award
- 2013, Traditional Turkey Journalism Awards in the category "Best Interview"[10]