News anchor fired for having Starbucks cup

It comes as the coffee company has been boycotted in Turkey and by Palestinian advocates around the world for its perceived support of Israel, which the company has denied.

Meltem Gunay, an anchor for TGRT Haber was fired along with the director of the program, with the media company saying that it "knows the sensitivities of the Turkish people regarding Gaza and defends them to the end".

"We do not approve of this action of the presenter and director, whose employment contracts were terminated, and we strongly condemn it," TGRT Haber said in statement on the X platform (formerly Twitter).

The broadcaster said that Gunay presented the news with the Starbucks cup in view during the Christmas Eve broadcast.

"In accordance with the principles of our institution, it is strictly forbidden for the announcer to present on TGRT News TV in a way that will covertly advertise any company."

"The news anchor and director who acted contrary to this principle were terminated for just cause."

Starbucks along with a host of other brands have been boycotted in Turkey following the Israel-Hamas war which began on October 7, 2023.

Boycotts of companies with allegedly "pro-Israel" stances have received official support in Turkey with the Turkish Parliament and Turkish Airlines dumping Coca Cola, Pepsi and Nestle.

Starbucks became embroiled in the tensions over the Middle East conflict after its employee union Workers United posted a message supporting Palestine on social media.

The coffee chain and Workers United are suing each other after Starbucks wanted to stop the union from using its name and logo saying that it had no official stance on the war.

A number of Starbucks venues have been vandalised as tensions over the conflict spill beyond the Middle East.

Starbucks CEO Laxman Narasimhan later said that protesters were "influenced by misrepresentation on social media of what we stand for".

"Our stance is clear. We stand for humanity," he said.