Learning about Turkishness by satellite: Private satisfactions and public benefits 1

Since the early nineties, satellite watching has become one of the most popular pastimes in Turkish families in the Netherlands. In order to understand how Turkish satellite television affects the Dutch-Turkish cultural boundary as perceived by the immigrants, we held a series of interviews and focus group discussions. The interest immigrants take in Turkish television is a many sided phenomenon. On the affective side, young people and their first generation parents feel affirmed in their love of and affinity to Turkish people, Turkish landscapes and Turkish cultural sights and sounds. On the informational side, satellite TV has brought various surprises. Before the entrance of commercial satellite TV, the second generation was caught up in the first generations defensive definition of Turkishness. Part of the attractions of satellite television to young people is that it offers a much less traditional picture of Turkishness.