Facebook to Appoint Turkey Envoy to Comply With Media Law

Facebook said its decision did not mean it was changing the way it handles government requests to take down content.

Advertisement
By Agence France-Presse | Updated: 19 January 2021 10:46 IST
Highlights
  • Turkey's new social media regulations entered into force in October
  • They require platforms with more than one million unique daily users
  • Social media firms have diverged in their approach to Turkey's new law

Facebook's continued refusal to appoint an envoy threatened to see its bandwidth cut by 90 percent in May

Facebook said on Monday it will appoint a representative in Turkey to comply with a new social media law aimed at forcing platforms to quickly remove contentious posts.

The US social media giant's announcement came a day before it and other non-complying platforms were due to face advertising bans in Turkey.

Media freedom advocates view the law as part of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's effort to limit political discourse and stifle dissent - a drive that gained added momentum after he survived a failed coup in 2016.

Advertisement

But Facebook said its decision did not mean it was changing the way it handles government requests to take down content.

It said its representative would be withdrawn if Facebook felt it was being forced to compromise on its principles and community standards.

"We would like to underline the importance of our platform as a place where users can exercise their right to freedom of expression," Facebook said in a statement.

Advertisement

Turkey's new social media regulations entered into force in October after being rammed through parliament by Erdogan's ruling party.

They require platforms with more than one million unique daily users to appoint representatives who can handle court orders to take down offending content within 48 hours.

Advertisement

Facebook's continued refusal to appoint an envoy threatened to see its bandwidth cut by 90 percent in May.

Turkey's deputy minister for infrastructure Omer Fatih  Sayan tweeted that Monday's decision also covers Facebook-owned Instagram.

Advertisement

Access to websites and content had already been partially restricted in the nation of 83 million people before the latest regulations entered into force.

Twitter last year listed Turkey - along with Russia and Japan - among the top three countries responsible for 86 percent of all requests to take down posts.

Social media firms have diverged in their approach to Turkey's new law.

Facebook's Russian equivalent VK opened a local office in November but Twitter and YouTube along with Facebook all got fined that same month for failing to comply.

The Chinese short videos app TikTok said it would open a Turkish office earlier this month.

Twitter has not yet announced a decision to name a Turkish envoy.


Does WhatsApp's new privacy policy spell the end for your privacy? We discussed this on Orbital, our weekly technology podcast, which you can subscribe to via Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, or RSS, download the episode, or just hit the play button below.

Affiliate links may be automatically generated - see our ethics statement for details.
 

Catch the latest from the Consumer Electronics Show on Gadgets 360, at our CES 2026 hub.

Further reading: Facebook
Advertisement

Related Stories

Popular Mobile Brands
  1. Ustaad Bhagat Singh OTT Release: When, Where to Watch the Telugu Action Drama
  2. Wheel of Fortune India on OTT: When, Where to Watch Akshay Kumar's Game Show
  3. Sirai OTT Release: When, Where to Watch the Tamil Courtroom Drama Online
  4. Amazon Great Republic Day Sale 2026: Know the Best Deals on Tablets
  1. Toxic Gas May Have Sparked Life on Earth Through Icy ‘Cobweb’ Crystals
  2. Is Space Sticky? New Study Challenges Standard Dark Energy Theory
  3. Sirai OTT Release: When, Where to Watch the Tamil Courtroom Drama Online
  4. Wheel of Fortune India OTT Release: When, Where to Watch Akshay Kumar-Hosted Global Game Show
  5. NASA Confirms Expedition 74 Will Continue ISS Work After Crew-11 Exit
  6. European Space Agency Hit by Cyberattacks, Hundreds of Gigabytes of Data Stolen by Hackers
  7. Ustaad Bhagat Singh OTT Release: When, Where to Watch Harish Shankar's Telugu Action Drama Film
  8. Bha Bha Ba is Now Streaming: All You Need to Know About This Malayalam Comedy Thriller Film
  9. World’s Biggest Alien Search Enters Final Stage With 100 Mystery Signals
  10. NASA Pulls Out Artemis II Rocket to Launch Pad Ahead of Historic Moon Mission
Gadgets 360 is available in
Download Our Apps
Available in Hindi
© Copyright Red Pixels Ventures Limited 2026. All rights reserved.