Elon Musk Faces a Major Obstacle
Elon Musk #ElonMusk
A senior European official says that Musk’s Twitter won’t be as free as that in the European Union.
CONSTELLATION BRANDS, INC.
Elon Musk was quick to impose his mark on Twitter.
The billionaire immediately fired Parag Agrawal, the CEO of the social network, and three other top executives just hours after having finalized an agreement with the firm which he acquired for $44 billion.
Shortly after, he posted a cryptic tweet that seemed to confirm that he had become the new boss.
“The bird is freed,” Musk posted on Oct. 27, referring to the company’s logo.
This tweet and the departure of Twitter executives suggests that the transaction has been finalized and approved by regulators.
‘Fly By our Rules’
But several hours after Musk’s message, a senior European Union official appears to be saying that is not yet the case in Europe. Thierry Breton, the European commissioner for the internal market, said in a tweet, more or less resuming that of Musk, that the businessman will have to submit to the rules of the European Union.
“In Europe, the bird will fly by our 🇪🇺 rules,” Breton replied to Musk’s tweet, and added hashtag “#DSA.”
DSA refers to the Digital Services Act, a law adopted last January by the European Parliament to regulate the Internet in order to make it a “safer space for users”.
The EU wants what is prohibited offline to be prohibited online as well.
The text requires that social networks set up a “button” to report. It should be easy to access and easy to use. In other words, you should not have to click 36,000 times to trigger a report. Platforms are clearly asked to acquire technical and human resources to better moderate their networks, i.e. to erase illegal content (homophobic, racist, pornographic, illegal products, etc.).
The law will come into force in 2024 and includes fines of up to 6% of a platform’s overall revenue.
Musk has been clear on the content policy. He believes that any illegal content will not be allowed. But the billionaire, who defines himself as a “free speech absolutist,” risks finding himself in the crosshairs of the EU where there is less tolerance on what is or is not freedom of expression.
Musk Reactivates Ye
The associations fear that Musk will reinstate the accounts of conspirators and extremists. And let misinformation proliferate on the platform.
“Twitter obviously cannot become a free-for-all hellscape, where anything can be said with no consequences!” he wrote to advertisers. “In addition to adhering to the laws of the land, our platform must be warm and welcoming to all, where you can choose your desired experience according to your preferences, just as you can choose, for example, to see movies or play video games ranging from all ages to mature.”
Musk seems to have already made an initial decision that says a lot about his upcoming content policy.
He reactivated the account of rapper Ye, formerly known as Kanye West. Ye was banned from Twitter in early October after making anti-Semitic remarks.
In the United States, Ye’s comments do not break the law, but this is not the case in several European countries.