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Elon Musk has addressed the European Union’s concerns regarding disinformation and fake news being disseminated on X in the context of Hamas’ recent attack on Israel.
Elon Musk, in conjunction with Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg, received a warning from Thierry Breton, the European Union commissioner known as the ‘digital enforcer,’ urging them to take measures to combat the proliferation of disinformation and misleading content on their platforms.
In a newly released three-page statement, CEO Linda Yaccarino asserted that the company had taken action to either remove or label tens of thousands of pieces of content. Additionally, she stated that they had responded to 80 requests from the EU to take down content within the stipulated timeframes. Yaccarino emphasized X’s commitment to not allowing terrorist organizations or violent extremist groups on the platform and outlined their real-time efforts to remove such accounts.
Following the recent attack, Yaccarino mentioned that X had convened a leadership group to assess the situation.
In response to Breton’s demand for X and Meta to provide details within 24 hours on how they are handling ‘illegal content and disinformation’ in line with the EU’s new Digital Service Act (DSA), the CEO mentioned that at the time of Breton’s public expression of concerns, Europol had not contacted them regarding illegal content.
The DSA, which became effective for large platforms in August, imposes fines of up to six percent of a company’s global turnover for the dissemination of illegal online content.
The exchange between Breton and Musk online intensified, with Breton’s letter pointing out ‘violent and terrorist content circulating on your platform’ following Hamas’s weekend operation near the Gaza border.
Musk challenged Breton to specify the violations he alluded to on X and highlighted his platform’s commitment to open source and transparency, which he believed the EU supported.
Breton responded, asserting that it was Musk’s responsibility to demonstrate compliance with his platform’s policies and expressing readiness to rigorously enforce DSA compliance rules.
Musk, on X, emphasized the importance of transparency and called for explicit posting of concerns on the platform, rejecting the idea of backroom deals. He expressed his lack of understanding regarding the concerns.
In a post on Monday, X announced the removal of newly created accounts associated with the Islamist group Hamas and the action taken on tens of thousands of posts containing graphic media, violent speech, and hateful conduct. The specifics of the actions were not disclosed.
Breton’s letter to Zuckerberg urged him to ensure the effectiveness of moderation systems on Meta platforms and maintain vigilance regarding DSA compliance amid the ongoing conflict.
A Meta spokesperson responded, stating that after the Hamas attack, they had swiftly established a special operations center staffed with experts, including fluent Hebrew and Arabic speakers, to closely monitor and respond to the evolving situation. The teams were focused on ensuring compliance with their policies and local laws and collaborating with fact-checkers to combat disinformation. They pledged to continue these efforts as the conflict persisted.
