Addressing Musk directly after mentioning the situation in Great Britain and the interview with Trump, Breton focused on the due diligence obligations set out in the Digital Services Act (DSA): “As an individual entity that ultimately controls a platform with over 300 million users worldwide, a third of which are in the EU, which has been designated as a very large online platform, you have a legal obligation to ensure compliance of X with EU law and in particular with the DSA in the EU”. Hence the request to promptly ensure the effectiveness of the systems and to report the measures taken. With a lot of threat: Breton stressed that he will not hesitate to use the tools at his disposal, including by adopting provisional measures, in the event of serious harm to European citizens.
The most surprising part is when Breton talks about freedom of expression and informationas well as of media pluralism. The EU Commissioner has highlighted that he wants these freedoms to be effectively protected but also that all proportionate and effective mitigation measures are put in place regarding the amplification of harmful content in relation to relevant events. The spotlight is on the risk of “generating harmful effects on civic discourse and public safety”. In other words, X must keep at bay content that promotes hatred, disorder, incitement to violence or certain examples of disinformation, a problem linked to all social networks and not just X. But the former Twitter has a flaw: it is owned by Musk.
Breton added that the DSA obligations apply without exception or discrimination to the moderation of X’s entire user and content community, recalling that formal proceedings against X under the DSA are already underway, in particular in areas related to the dissemination of illegal content and the effectiveness of measures taken to combat disinformation. In short, Either you comply or sanctions will rain down. An unprecedented intimidation. The CEO of X, Linda Yaccarinospoke bluntly of an unprecedented attempt to extend a law intended to apply in Europe to political activities in the United States. It is impossible to disagree with her. But not only that. Yaccarino added that the EU “is patronizing European citizens, suggesting that they are incapable of listening to a conversation and drawing their own conclusions.” But the best is yet to come.
Far from being frightened by Breton’s letter, Musk has chosen the path of memes to respond. Quoting the EU Commissioner’s tweet, Mister X chose a phrase from the movie Tropic Thunder: “F*** you”. And, as if that wasn’t enough, in the caption he added: “To be honest, I really wanted to respond with this Tropic Thunder meme, but I would NEVER do something so rude and irresponsible!”. Brussels hit and sunk: Musk refuses to be intimidated.
To be honest, I really wanted to respond with this Tropic Thunder meme, but I would NEVER do something so rude & irresponsible! https://t.co/jL0GDW5QUx pic.twitter.com/XhUxCSGFNP
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) August 12, 2024
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