Erdogan of Turkey says social media is a “threat to democracy” Social Networking News

President Erdogan says it is important to tackle misinformation and propaganda “in the realm of truth.”

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on Saturday that social media is one of the biggest threats to democracy.

The Erdogan government intends to push through legislation to criminalize the spread of false news and misinformation on the Internet, but critics say the proposed changes would tighten restrictions on freedom of expression.

Erdogan said social media was first seen as a symbol of freedom when it first appeared, but has now become “one of the main sources of threats to today’s democracy.”

“In this regard, it is important to inform the public to fight misinformation and propaganda in the realm of truth,” he said.

“We try to protect our people, especially the most vulnerable sections of our society, from lies and misinformation without violating our citizens’ right to receive accurate and impartial information.”

“Desirable” comment

The longtime Turkish president said the lives of millions of people were “darkened” because they were spreading through “channels with no effective control mechanism.”

Turkey passed a law last year requiring social media platforms with more than one million users to maintain a legal representation and store data in the country. Major social media companies, including Facebook, YouTube and Twitter, have set up offices in Turkey.

New legislation would spread “misinformation” and “fake news” to criminal offenders that would impose a five-year prison sentence, according to pro-government media. It would also establish a social media regulator.

Most of Turkey’s major media companies are under government control, leaving social media as a major outlet for opposing voices.

Freedom House’s Freedom on the Net report, published in September, stated that Turkey is “not free”, removing content that is critical of the government, and prosecuting people who post “desirable” comments on social media.