Turkey seeks to tighten grip on Twitter after protests

Anti-government protesters wave flags and shout slogans during a demonstration in Ankara late June 25, 2013. REUTERS/Umit Bektas

ANKARA (Reuters) - Turkey said on Wednesday it had asked Twitter to set up a representative office inside the country, which could give it a tighter rein over the microblogging site it has accused of helping stir weeks of anti-government protests.

While mainstream Turkish media largely ignored the protests during the early days of the unrest, social networking sites such as Twitter and Facebook emerged as the main outlets for Turks opposed to the government.