French broadcasters banned from mentioning Twitter, Facebook

Broadcasting watchdog rules it would break guidelines on advertising

France’s broadcasting watchdog has banned French TV and radio presenters from mentioning social networking sites like Facebook and Twitter on air, ruling that naming them directly breaks guidelines on advertising, the BBC reports. Even so, hosts can still talk about the services without naming them. French broadcasters use social networking sites to communicate with viewers, so it isn’t clear how they’ll now be able to direct viewers to their Facebook pages or Twitter feeds without identifying them. Observers have said the French government is overly keen to regulate in this area.

BBC News