The Spanish government today unveiled a draft of an innovative law allowing citizens to claim the correction of publications on the internet, in particular influencers who have more than 100,000 followers.

“There are rumor-mongers and lie-mongers who pollute the public discourse with lies every day. The right of correction can be turned against them,” Minister of Justice Felix Bolanios told a press conference at the conclusion of a cabinet meeting.

This new proposed “right of correction” legislation will replace a 1984 law to “adapt the law to the realities of the 21st century” and this will apply to both traditional media and digital platforms because we need to “be aware of the impact that rumours and fake news have on all democracies,” the justice minister said.

The draft law, which must be approved by Parliament, stipulates that all media outlets, all content creators or influencers who have more than 100,000 subscribers on one social media outlet or more than 200,000 on all social media outlets “must have an easy and accessible mechanism that will make it easier for the citizens of our country to claim a correction,” Bolanios explained.

The turnaround time for a request for correction submitted to a media outlet is also extended from seven to 10 days. It will no longer be necessary to contact the editorial office.

Consumer association Facua welcomed this move by the government in a statement, deeming it “necessary for individuals affected by inaccurate or false information to benefit from legal protection that allows them not only to have tools to defend their honour, but also to demand the publication of their own versions.”

For months, Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez has made fighting disinformation a priority and in September unveiled a plan for “democratic renewal”, accusing those who spread “disinformation and defamation”.

This government plan was announced in the wake of the opening of a corruption and influence peddling investigation targeting his wife Begonia Gomez after a far-right-leaning collective denounced the plan, which admitted it was based on unverified press information.

The law, if approved, will be implemented gradually by the end of the legislative term in three years and includes some thirty measures, including the creation of a public register listing newspapers, their owners and their advertising revenue, and strengthening the right to privacy and correcting erroneous information.