France gags media against Facebook and Twitter mentions
The French media has been banned from mentioning with Facebook or Twitter unless a story is directly related to either social networking site.
The ban, according to The Guardian, will mean that journalists will no longer end their reports by telling readers to ‘Follow us on Twitter’ or ‘ Check out our Facebook page’ which the French Government deems to be promotional and falls foul of a rule put into place in 1992.
It is thought that such references to either social networking giant offers ‘preference’ against other social networking sites which are ‘struggling for recognition’ a Government spokesperson is quoted as having said.
At the time of writing, no details had emerged as to how the rule would be enforced, but it has already begun speculation that the French Government is trying to control the influence of Anglo-Saxon culture.