Elon Musk, CEO of X Corp., and Linda Yaccarino have been warned by the European Commission about possible penalties and limitations if they fail to stop the spreading of illegal content including hate speech, incitement to violence, and other forms.
The warning is issued ahead of a much-anticipated live interview that will air on X’s streaming service Spaces between Musk and the former US president Donald Trump.
EU examines X’s compliance with Digital Services Act
In a Monday letter, Thierry Brêton, European Commissioner for Internal Market (ECMI), raised concerns over the spread of harmful material on X.
Breton said that the recent UK events, such as riots fuelled by misinformation on social media platforms, raised concerns about the role of the platform in limiting this type of content.
Breton’s letter posted on X called for improved effectiveness of X’s content moderating systems. He also urged the company to disclose any actions taken in response to potential violations of EU’s Digital Services Act.
The legislation requires that streaming and social media services take steps to prevent illegal content from spreading and actively combat hate speech.
X’s answer to EU concerns
Linda Yaccarino (CEO of X) responded to the letter from the Commission by calling it “an unprecedented attempt” to expand European regulation to US political activity.
Yaccarino claimed that this letter undermined the ability of European users to evaluate content critically and that EU’s position reflected an overreach.
Musk, also the CEO of Tesla is scheduled to interview Trump live and unscripted on Spaces.
The session is one of Trump’s few campaign appearances in this week. It comes during a very competitive race against Democratic Vice-President Kamala Harris.
Musk’s controversial comments and history of inflammatory remarks on X have prompted concern in the EU.
Recent incidents involving X’s content
Recent incidents involving X’s content are partly responsible for the EU’s warning.
Musk was criticized for his provocative comments about the current situation in Britain, which included suggesting that the violence might escalate to a civil conflict.
Musk also shared an image that falsely claimed to be the headline of “The Telegraph”, claiming the UK is building “detainment camp” in the Falkland islands.
Ashlea Simmon, a member of Britain First, also posted this post.
The UK Government has voiced its disapproval of Musk’s treatment of misinformation about X.
Peter Kyle, Technology Minister, criticized Musk’s platform due to the lack of accountability. He compared negotiations with X with dealing with a government abroad because of its influence.
The European Commission’s investigation of X’s compliance with the DSA may have significant implications for the company.
Commission can enforce interim measures including changing recommendation algorithms, and increasing monitoring of certain content.
It can fine a company up to 6% its global revenue annually for DSA violation.
X was accused by the Commission of violating dark patterns rules, transparency in advertising, and researchers’ access to data.
How X handles content and compliance with regulatory requirements in the future will be affected by what X finds out from this investigation.
As new information becomes available, this post EU warns Elon of possible penalties if X does not address hate speech before Trump’s interview could be updated.
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