Governments demand Musk police Twitter
World governments appear concerned that new Twitter owner Elon Musk will follow through on his commitment to making Twitter a free speech platform. The European Union and United Kingdom both issued stern warnings to the billionaire Tuesday, demanding that he moderate the views expressed on the platform.
“We welcome everyone,” EU Commissioner for the Internal Market Thierry Breton told the Financial Times in a Tuesday interview. “We are open but on our conditions. At least we know what to tell him: ‘Elon, there are rules. You are welcome but these are our rules. It’s not your rules which will apply here.’”
Breton then threatened Musk with penalties if he does not comply adequately.
“Anyone who wants to benefit from this market will have to [fulfill] our rules,” Breton said. “The board [of Twitter] will have to make sure that if it operates in Europe it will have to [fulfill] the obligations, including moderation, open algorithms, freedom of speech, transparency in rules, obligations to comply with our own rules for hate speech, revenge porn [and] harassment. If [Twitter] does not comply with our law, there are sanctions — 6 per cent of the revenue and, if they continue, banned from operating in Europe,” he added.
The UK issued its own warning, with Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s spokesperson saying that “[regardless] of ownership, all social media platforms must be responsible. That includes protecting users from harm on their sites.”
Both the UK and EU have passed legislation regulating social media posts as part of a campaign to curb “hate speech” and promote “online safety”.
Germany, the EU’s largest economy, now investigates German citizens for criticizing officials, as reported earlier this month by Frontline News.
In what it called a “day of action”, the German government conducted investigations on 100 of its political opponents last month, even conducting raids on homes and apartments. The crime, according to the Federal Criminal Police Office (BKA), was insulting German officials online.
Furthermore, Germany’s Ministry of Interior notified the public last month that citizens who approve of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine will be prosecuted. Also, any German found using the “Z” symbol online, an abbreviation for the Russian words meaning “for victory”, will likewise be prosecuted.
“Russia’s war of aggression against #Ukraine is a criminal offense,” read the notice. “Anyone publicly approving the war may be liable to prosecution in Germany. This applies to using the ‘Z’ symbol, too. German security authorities are keeping an eye on the use of the symbol. - Ministry of Interior.”
On Tuesday, Elon Musk discussed his vision for Twitter when free speech intersects with the law.
“By ‘free speech’, I simply mean that which matches the law,” tweeted the billionaire. “I am against censorship that goes far beyond the law. If people want less free speech, they will ask government to pass laws to that effect. Therefore, going beyond the law is contrary to the will of the people.”
