UK sets out social media prosecution guidelines

LONDON (AP) — British government prosecutors have set out new guidelines to make it harder to bring legal cases against people who send offensive messages on Twitter and Facebook.

The guidelines, published Wednesday, come amid increasing criminal prosecutions against people who post online messages deemed indecent or menacing, and criticism that such cases are a threat to free speech. Civil rights campaigners have complained that British authorities have been too harsh with people who carelessly make insensitive comments online.