Elon Musk calls himself a “free speech absolutist.” He claimed to be so committed to the unfettered, open exchange of ideas that he said the only way X could get governments to suppress speech on his platform was “at gunpoint.” All of which explains why Musk recently allowed X to be banned in Brazil rather than comply with the country’s rules for social media platforms to block certain accounts.
It doesn’t explain Musk’s history of doing the same thing in other countries — often at the behest of right-wing or authoritarian regimes.
Musk has been open to complying with government orders almost from the beginning. In January 2023, more than two months after Musk took over, the platform then called Twitter blocked a BBC documentary that was critical of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi. India’s Ministry of Information and Broadcasting confirms that Twitter is one of the platforms being suppressed Modi problem At the request of the Modi government, the film was called “hostile propaganda and anti-India garbage”.
Musk later claimed he knew nothing about it. But in March this year, Twitter succumbed again after the Indian government imposed an Internet blockade on the northern state of Punjab. It banned Indian users from accessing the accounts of more than 100 prominent activists, journalists and politicians, intercept reported at the time.
Later that year, Twitter’s global government affairs account announced that it had “taken action to restrict certain content in Turkey” to ensure the site “remains available to the people of Turkey.” as slate It was noted at the time that Twitter had imposed restrictions on certain accounts in the run-up to Turkey’s national elections and had done so amid rampant social media criticism of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
A Twitter representative later said the company had challenged a court order requiring the site to ban access to certain posts and accounts. Nonetheless, Twitter suppressed the accounts and posts. “Following multiple such warnings, we received what we believe to be a final threat to restrict service,” Twitter said in a statement, adding that it “took action” against four accounts and 409 tweets. , “to ensure Twitter remains available during the election” weekend.
Musk has previously said that while he personally believes in free speech, he “prefers to abide by the laws of the countries in which Twitter operates.” In a 2023 interview with the BBC, Musk said that Twitter “cannot transcend” the laws of the countries in which it operates. He reiterated that claim in an interview with CNN, saying the platform had “no choice” but to comply with government censorship demands.
Under Musk’s leadership, the site now known as X easily meets such requirements. According to data analyzed by Lumen, between October 2022 and April 2023, Twitter received 971 requests from governments and courts to suppress specific content and identify private information about anonymous accounts. Rest of the world. To some extent, it meets 99% of those requirements. Most of these requests come from countries with restrictive speech laws, including India, Turkey and the United Arab Emirates.
But X does not always comply with government moderation requests, nor is it particularly vigilant about removing illegal content. In January 2023, a European anti-hate speech organization filed a lawsuit in Germany, accusing the platform of failing to appropriately moderate anti-Semitic content and Holocaust denial content on its platform, violating the organization’s own policies and German law. Hate speech on X has increased significantly since Musk took over, largely due to Musk’s decision to fire the content moderation team and the X Trust and Safety Council.
Musk has also sparred with EU regulators over false information about X. Delete posts containing illegal content from online platforms, otherwise legal liability will be pursued. But the following year, X withdrew from the European Union’s voluntary code of conduct against disinformation. This voluntary agreement was actually the predecessor of the DSA.
Since then, EU regulators have criticized X for allowing false information and illegal content to remain on the platform, and European Commissioner Thierry Breton warned Musk that regulators are paying close attention to the platform. Musk, for his part, has occasionally been confrontational with Breton and EU regulators over their stance on X.
In April, an Australian judge ruled that X needed to block a video showing a bishop being stabbed in a Sydney church, with Musk blaming the country’s censorship. X’s global government affairs account said the company believed the order “does not fall within the scope of Australian law” and said the country “does not have the power to dictate what X’s users can see globally”.
Some of X’s inconsistencies in complying with government review requirements may be attributable to technical details. (X did not respond immediately edgeRequested comment on its decision. But it’s worth noting that the video embodies one of Musk’s favorite causes: opposing immigration and the so-called “great replacement” of white people by people of color. Australian authorities said they believed the stabbing was a religiously motivated terrorist attack. More broadly, Musk has a history of standing up to governments and politicians he considers too “woke.”
Musk’s other business interests may also be relevant. Last fall, just months after X suppressed posts by critics, Erdogan asked Musk to build a Tesla factory in Turkey. And in April this year, financial times According to reports, Tesla is looking for a site for a US$3 billion factory in India. The man who once said he would only allow one of his companies to suppress speech “at gunpoint” is far less steadfast in his beliefs than he claims.
