The decision of the new owner of Twitter, Elon Muskto put an end to the fight against disinformation linked to Covid is a “big problem”, estimated this Thursday Emmanuel Macronas France faces a new wave of infections.
“I think we have to take the subject head on. I am in favor of the exact opposite, more regulation. We do it (in France, editor’s note) and we do it at European level, ”replied the French president, currently on a state visit to the United States, during an interview with the ABC channel. The Head of State insisted on the fact that the freedom of expression “implies responsibilities and limits. You can’t go out and make racist or anti-Semitic remarks, it’s a point that is important to me to defend.
Musk the Libertarian
A conception of freedom of expression very far from that defended by Elon Musk, who believes on the contrary, in a very libertarian conception, that the latter should know almost no limits. Moreover, the billionaire has never made a secret of his opinion about the health restrictions put in place to fight the pandemic, especially when they meant the temporary closure of his Tesla factory in California. “Telling people they can’t leave their homes and that they would be arrested if they did is fascist. It is not democratic. It is not freedom. Give people back their damn freedom, ”he got carried away in April 2020, during a conference call for financial analysts.
The European Commission issued a warning to Elon Musk on Wednesday. Thierry Breton, recalled that the company had to “significantly increase its efforts” if it wanted to comply with European rules.
Since the takeover of the social network, after a first phase during which Elon Musk tried to reassure NGOs and advertisers who feared an outbreak of toxic content (hate speech, disinformation, etc.) on the platform, Twitter has reinstalled a certain number suspended or banned accounts, starting with that of former President Donald Trump, suspended in January 2021 for calling for violence, after the attack on Congress.