THE REFLECTION OF THE DISSOLUTION AND DETERIORATION OF THE FAMILY INSTITUTION IN DAYTIME PROGRAMS DUE TO THE INFLUENCE OF SOCIAL MEDIA: THE CASE OF THE “ESRA EROL’DA” SHOW

Social media has become one of the most important communication media of the digital age. This digital medium, which penetrates every aspect of our lives, also shows its effect on family relationships, the smallest unit of society. In this study, it is aimed to examine how family relationships, which have deteriorated due to the use of social media in the digital age, are represented in daytime programs. The population of the study consists of daytime programs about family relationships in Turkey. Representing this universe, “Esra Erol'da”, the most watched daytime program in our country in 2024, was selected as a sample. All episodes of the program, which constitutes the sample, covering a period of 4 months between 2 September-31 December 2024, were analysed using the content analysis method within the scope of case study, one of the qualitative research designs. In the events encountered in these episodes, the themes that cause the deterioration of family relationships through social media and the frequency of repetition were tried to be determined. With the data obtained as a result of the research, 5 different categories named "infidelity, violence, fraud, unhappy marriages and parental exposure" were reached. By explaining the categories obtained within the framework of Gerbner's cultivation theory, it can be concluded that social media today plays an intermediary role in the deterioration and dissolution of family relationships and the events within the scope of these categories are repeatedly processed in daytime programs and replanted in the public consciousness.