Regulating Online Content Creators

Journalists and media freedom activists in Lesotho are objecting to a government proposal to restrict social media, saying it amounts to stifling free speech. The regulations, which are before Parliament, would require all social media users with more than 100 followers to register as an “internet broadcaster”, which requires them to abide by the same rules that govern broadcast media. It would also allow regulators to investigate social media users’ posts and order their removal. The Media Institute of Southern Africa, a media monitoring group, has pointed out that these draft regulations follow similar rules in Tanzania and Kenya  both of which have passed similar laws, sparking outrage from journalists and academics in those countries.