French Media May Not Mention Particular Social Media To Viewers

The French agency Conseil Supérieur de l'Audiovisuel has told French reporters  (advisory opinion here, in French, based on a law first passed in 1986 prohibiting certain types of advertising, updated 2010) not to mention to viewers that they can "follow" or "friend" their favorite media types on Facebook and Twitter, for example. Particular social media are brands, according to the agency, and mentioning them constitutes impermissible advertising. Reuters article here, discussion here on Roy Greenslade's Blog. A New York Times article has more discussion.