X/Twitter owner Elon Musk has claimed the European Union tried to blackmail him into allowing covert censorship at the behest of Brussels, and has accused other social platforms of making such deals.
The European Union moved to enforce its new Digital Services Act (DSA) on Friday, accusing Elon Musk’s X (formerly Twitter) of violating EU rules and threatening to fine it. Musk quickly hit back, claiming that the DSA itself is a source of “misinformation” and that the EU had tried to make a secret deal with him to enable EU-led censorship.
In his argument, he wrote: “The European Commission [X] “It’s an illegal secret agreement, if you quietly censor speech without telling anyone, you don’t get fined,” Musk said. “Other platforms accepted it, but I didn’t.”
Musk added: “We look forward to a public fight in court so that the people of Europe can know the truth.”
How do you know you’re the real deal?
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) July 12, 2024
Brexit campaign leader Nigel Farage, who has long denounced the EU’s behind-closed-doors negotiations and opaque practices during his successful campaign to get Britain out of the EU and away from Brussels’ influence, responded to Musk’s claims on Friday night, praising him, saying: “Elon Musk is revealing the truth about the EU. He’s a brilliant guy.”
As stated ReutersThe EU has criticised X for not being transparent enough, noting that regulations require social media platforms to address “illegal content” and “risks to public safety.” It has also complained that X’s Blue Check system “does not align with industry practice.”
If X/Musk does not comply with the EU’s demands, the EU could reportedly fine the company 6% of its global revenue and require it to make “significant changes” to how it operates. In theory, Twitter could be banned from operating in Europe altogether.
The launch of DSA was reported last year.
The European Union’s recently adopted Digital Services Act (DSA) describes the EU as providing an “unprecedented level of public surveillance” over the internet, with the European Commission set to subject at least 19 online platforms to the strictest level of censorship by August 25.
“With great size comes great responsibility,” European Commissioner for the Internal Market Thierry Breton said while announcing the measures, adding: “We cannot act as if we are too big to care.”
…
The driving force behind the bill, former French tech executive Thierry Breton, had previously warned Twitter’s new CEO Elon Musk that the social network could risk being banned in the European Union if it reverted to its free speech ideals.
While the bill claims to protect free speech, Breton himself has supported big tech companies exercising their own censorship, appearing to support Twitter’s decision to ban then-President Donald Trump in 2021, saying tech companies “recognize their responsibility, obligation and means to prevent the spread of unlawful viral content.”
EU announces stricter content moderation rules for tech platforms like Twitter, YouTube, and Facebook https://t.co/YbG8f70VJ2
— Breitbart London (@BreitbartLondon) April 26, 2023
Editor’s note 7/24/12: This article has been updated to include comments from Elon Musk relevant to the article.
