Turkey Internet Ban: Country Seeks to Expand Social Media Ban From Twitter to YouTube, Google "Concerned"

Following in the footsteps of Egypt, Syria and Venezuela, to name a few, Turkey attempted to block social media access within its borders. It began with Twitter, which protestors were using to disseminate information. With Twitter mostly out of the way, the Turkish government turned to block YouTube, another source of information and subversion against the government.

The government of Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan is experiencing pressure due to charges of corruption and despotism against him. Protestors have hit the streets ahead of elections, which take place at the end of March. Multiple deaths have already occurred, including that of 15-year-old Berkin Elvan, who was hit with a tear gas canister on the head while out shopping for bread, according to the BBC.

The Wall Street Journal reports that Erdoğan's government approached Google asking them to block their Turkish service. Google denied their request, calling it illegal.

Videos attacking the Turkish prime minister fill the video sharing site but one in particular has incited Erdoğan's ire. The video, which has accrued more than a million views, shows Erdoğan instructing his son to hide money from investigators, according to the Wall Street Journal. While the prime minister dismisses it as a doctored recording created to discredit him, his asking Google to block YouTube may show a bit of guilt on his part.

In a statement Google reinforced its decision.

"We support a free and open Internet throughout the world and are concerned whenever and wherever it comes under threat," a Google spokesman said.

Yet, the Turkish government continues to block the Internet.

According to PC World, the Turkish government caught up with the work around devised by protestors: the Google DNS server. After blocking Twitter, protestors began circumventing the ban by going directly through Google's DNS server, but this has now been blocked as well. Though Twitter can still be accessed via a VPN or a proxy server, the Turkish government has now blocked the easiest runabout.