Social media a ‘threat to democracy’, says Turkey’s Erdogan

Recep Tayyip Erdogan, the Turkish president, described social media as one of the major challenges to democracy on Saturday.

Erdogan’s government intends to push legislation that would make it illegal to propagate fake news and disinformation online, but critics argue that the planned measures would stifle free expression.

‘Social media, which was once hailed as a symbol of liberty, has turned into one of the main sources of threat to today’s democracy,’ Erdogan said in a video address to a government-sponsored communications conference in Istanbul.

‘We aim to safeguard our people, particularly the most vulnerable members of our society, from lies and disinformation without infringing on our citizens’ right to receive accurate and impartial information,’ he continued.