Istanbul, Türkiye
I oversee editorial output of BBC Monitoring's Istanbul-based team, including our daily output and longer-term analysis pieces. Our team is responsible for alerting subscribers to breaking news and writing features on developing geopolitical trends related to Turkey and areas of editorial relevance.
My position involved analysing Turkish-language media coverage and open-source information on Turkey for BBC Monitoring, part of the BBC World Service. Our particular editorial focus centres on how geopolitical trends, energy, defence and domestic political dynamics are reflected in Turkish-language sources. In addition to crafting our daily editorial output, regular products and longer-term analysis pieces, I regularly appeared as a guest on the BBC's broadcast platforms, including television, radio and podcasts. I also appeared in several webinars with BBC Monitoring's subscribers and represented the Istanbul team in meetings with customers.
I produce, edit and host a podcast featuring conversations with authors of new books on Turkey and its region. Guests include journalists, academics and writers. A new episode is published every two weeks. The archive of over 200 episodes can be viewed at: https://turkeybooktalk.com/ Transcripts are published on Substack: https://turkeybooktalk.substack.com/
I have written a number of articles on Turkish and regional politics, history, media, culture and travel. My work has featured in print and online publications, including the New York Times, the Times Literary Supplement, Foreign Policy, Al Monitor, Politico, History Today, War on the Rocks, Literary Review, Turkish Policy Quarterly, Insight Turkey, openDemocracy, and others. A list of my published pieces can be found in the 'Publications' section below. I also post all my latest work on my website: https://armstrongwilliam.wordpress.com/ I'm available for any other freelance opportunities, so feel free to get in touch.
I wrote a weekly book review column for English-language Turkish newspaper the Hürriyet Daily News. The reviewed books were usually English-language titles focusing on Turkish or regional issues, fiction and non-fiction.
I edited articles, photo captions and page proofs for grammar, punctuation, style and adherence to the Associated Press' style guide, in Turkey's longest-running English language newspaper. My responsibilities also included editing breaking news stories for the newspaper's website, ensuring the accuracy of reports, and occasionally forming front-page content.
I taught English as a foreign language at a private language school to a range of ability levels - from absolute beginners to advanced conversation classes - using the Common European Framework Assessment method. In addition to general English classes, I taught private lessons and TOEFL IBT exam preparation lessons, and I was also in charge of organising the school's extra-curricular activities.