Europe | Fake news and censorship

As Turkey imposes a harsh “disinformation” law, critics fear the worst

The government says it is necessary to fight the spread of fake news on social media

2H8BW22 ISTANBUL - OCT 21: Newsstand with Turkish newspapers in Istanbul, October 21. 2021 in Turkey
|ISTANBUL

Turkish journalists are used to working under political pressure. Now, the rest of the country is feeling it too. A new media law passed last month criminalises the sharing of “fake news”, with punishments of up to three years in prison, and 18 months more if the news has been shared anonymously.

This article appeared in the Europe section of the print edition under the headline “Fake news and censorship”

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