The fundamental elements of a liberal democracy are regular elections, a parliament that exercises control over the government in accordance with the law and individual freedoms such as free debate, freedom of association and the right to protest (Carter & Stokes, 2002). Regular elections should include competitiveness between parties to keep elections fair and voters should be aware of their interests. Furthermore, as Carter and Stokes (2002) state, there should be “a parliament that can exercise control over government and all this occurs within the rule of law” (p.10). A liberal democracy should include broad freedoms of speech, press (all media properties), association, movement, thought and belief, assembly and protest, linguistic and cultural expression. These freedoms can also be called “individual freedoms” whose purpose is understood more with the help of media properties. Crowley (2011) states that “a free and vibrant press plays an important role around the world in the development of civil society and accountable governments” and continues with a broader rule “the freer the press, the more transparent and democratic it is likely to be the government." be." (Section Importance of a free and lively press, par.4). If the press is free and committed to promoting freedom of expression, fundamental steps can be taken towards the formation of a true civil society. An example is from the former Yugoslavia, where the growth of independent media helped change a country, “contributing to the dynamic that led to the end of Slobodan Milosevic's government, and his move to The Hague where he died in prison while facing criminal charges against humanity" (section The Importance of a Free and Vibrant Press, par.6). To support......half of the paper......the lack of media coverage during the Gezi Park protests in June 2013 (Fraser, 2013). Works Cited Fraser, S. (2013, July 26). Turkey criticized after firing journalist Yavuz Baydar over New York Times editorial. Retrieved from: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/07/26/yavuz-baydar-fired-turkey-freedom-press_n_3660955.html United Nations General Assembly, Universal Declaration of Human Rights, 10 December 1948, 217 A ( III), available at: http://www.refworld.org/docid/3ae6b3712c.html [accessed 2 December 2013]Hutton W. (2008). The writing on the wall: China and the West in the 21st century. London: Abacus.John Street (2011). Mass media, politics and democracy. London: Palgrave Macmillan. Michael Schudson (2008). Why democracies need an unlovable press. Cambridge: Polity Press.Dennis, E.E. & Snyder, R.W. (eds.). (1998) Media and democracy. New Jersey, NJ: Transaction Publishers.