Diyarbakir , Turkey ( CNN ) -- The empty anchorman 's chair in the small television studio said it all . Mehmet Ali Birand , Turkey 's most charismatic broadcaster , writer and political commentator had passed away . Birand was in his 70s . He had been battling cancer for years . But news of his death after undergoing gallbladder surgery in hospital still came as a shock . On Thursday night , a hush settled over a bustling restaurant in Diyarbakir when a waiter turned the TV up to hear the sad announcement . Only two days before , Birand had been broadcasting from behind that same desk . His eyes sparkled . He smiled as he spoke . He always performed in front of the camera with such energy . It looked like he was popping out of his chair . It 's tempting and lazy for me to describe Birand to foreigners as Turkey 's own `` Walter Cronkite . '' But Birand was so charming , elegant and vibrant , it 's not fair to compare the veteran journalist to anyone else . With Birand 's passing , Turkey lost one of its most effective communicators -- not only to millions of Turks who watched his news broadcast on Kanal D every night , but also to foreigners like myself who struggle haplessly to explain this fascinating and sometimes frustrating country to the outside world . Birand had a remarkable way with words , even when he was n't conversing in his native Turkish or in French , which he insisted he spoke far better than English . `` Oh my God , the state has a very heavy hand ! '' he exclaimed once , during a radio interview with me in 2007 . `` Once you are pursued , once you are sent to trial , everything changes . '' We were discussing state persecution of journalists . It was something Birand knew intimately . In the 1990s , his reporting angered the army generals who once controlled so much of Turkey , and he says they sought to punish him for his disobedience . Years later , the subject kept coming up in our conversations every time a reporter was thrown in jail , every time a journalist was murdered -- even as the government denied involvement . `` We do n't have enough freedom in criticizing the government , criticizing the police , the security forces . That has to be changed , there is no way out , '' Birand told me in 2010 . After the Armenian newspaper editor Hrant Dink was gunned down on an Istanbul street in 2007 , Birand told me he was now living with protection from a body guard . `` I 'm self-censoring , I do n't want to get into trouble , I do n't want to get shot . Unfortunately there is this possibility . I 'm afraid ! '' he said . But Birand continued writing and broadcasting . Until about a year ago he was managing editor of CNN 's joint venture in Turkey , CNN Turk . Every week in his newspaper columns , he gently preached tolerance , urging his leaders and fellow citizens to approach disputes through dialogue rather than fury . His final column published in the English-language Hurriyet Daily News urged hot-headed Kurdish militants and heavy-handed Turkish cops to show restraint at a demonstration Thursday in Diyarbakir for three Kurdish political activists murdered in Paris . `` I want to be hopeful , '' the veteran journalist wrote . As it turned out , the potentially-explosive Diyarbakir gathering passed peacefully , with no tear gas , gunfire or Molotov cocktails . Birand 's message of fairness won him supporters , even within the ranks of Turkey 's deeply alienated Kurdish youth . As crowds of Kurdish demonstrators dispersed after the memorial gathering on Thursday , a young Kurdish man approached my camera crew . `` Is Mehmet Ali Birand OK ? '' he asked , with obvious concern . `` I heard he was in hospital . '' I have been a little awestruck by Birand , ever since I first met him a decade ago when I was a foreign correspondent in my 20s . Last year I asked him what words of advice he might have for young Turkish journalists . `` One should not fear the government , especially the civilian government . We did not fear the military government . They should not fear the civilian government , '' said Birand . `` Continue writing . Continue insisting on your views . Do n't panic . '' People we lost in 2013 : The lives they lived .
Respected Turkish journalist Mehmet Ali Birand dies after operation . During Turkey 's recent history he often angered national leaders . Score: 6 His last published work included a plea for calm at a Kurdish demonstration .