Turkey introduces jail terms for ‘fake news’

Turkey's parliament on Thursday approved a tough pre-election law that could see reporters and social media users jailed for up to three years for spreading "fake news".

The Council of Europe said the measure's vague definition of "disinformation" and accompanying threat of jail could have a "chilling effect and increased self-censorship, not least in view of the upcoming elections in June 2023", reports AFP.

The new law imposes a criminal penalty for those found guilty of spreading false or misleading information. It also allows the courts to sentence accredited reporters and regular social media users who "openly spread misleading information" to between one and three years in jail.