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It is difficult to observe Elon Musk’s censorship battle with Brazilian judge Alexandre de Moraes and not think “coming soon to a social media company near you”.
The decision to ban X in one of the world’s largest digital markets has been applauded by pundits and academics who would like nothing more than for Brussels to take similar action against the man they see as a Donald Trump enabler.
Online censorship might be trickier than past attempts to muzzle mainstream media. Musk is reportedly keeping X accessible for Brazilians using his Starlink services. Will the Brazilian authorities be able to clamp down on service considering most of the hardware is located in space?
Musk’s coming clash with the European Commission (the two sides are already headed to court over a reported ‘secret deal’ that Musk refused) will no doubt come with its own nuances. The Brussels bubble, despite much moaning, is a big X user.
A meme battle between Musk and Commission digital honcho Thierry Breton would be fun to watch, though humour, sadly, is not valued — or even existent — in the corridors of the Berlaymont. If Musk baits Breton, he will no doubt respond with another boring lawyer’s letter.
I can’t foresee any other result than an attempt to replicate the Brazilian ban in the EU, though will the Commission let the EU courts meander towards their inevitable decision? Or will it step in with ‘emergency measures’?
The gloves are now definitively off in the online censorship wars. The free speech mentality that is still engrained in much of the US psyche is not prevalent on this side of the Atlantic, which means freedom fighters are in for a hard time.
The free speech war in Europe is poised to break out, and this publication is moving towards the frontline.
Till tomorrow,
Justin Stares |
Ralph Schoellhammer
