Twitter Will ‘Comply’ With Europe’s Censorship Rules, Says EU Commissioner

Tesla CEO Elon Musk in Washington, D.C., on Mar. 9, 2020. (Win McNamee/Getty Images)

Twitter intends to stick with the European Union’s new Digital Services Act (DSA) censorship rules that seek to control misinformation and hate speech online, Thierry Breton, EU commissioner for digital policy, recently said during a video call.

In a video call with Twitter owner Elon Musk, Breton discussed Twitter’s readiness to comply with the DSA that comes into effect starting September. “I take note of the path that Twitter is committed to take in Europe to comply with #DSA rules. Next few months will be crucial to transform commitments into reality. Constructive exchange with @elonmusk,” Breton said in a tweet on Feb. 1. Meanwhile, Musk claimed that he had a “good meeting” with Breton regarding the EU’s DSA.

“The goals of transparency, accountability and accuracy of information are aligned with ours,” Musk said in a tweet on Feb. 1. He also said that Community Notes, which allows people to add context to tweets collaboratively, will be “transformational” to achieve such objectives.

The European Union’s DSA aims to control the power of social media networks and remove content deemed unhealthy from the platforms. Companies that violate rules can be subjected to fines up to 6 percent of global annual revenues. In the worst case, the platform can be banned in the European Union.

The DSA grants the European Commission more powers to monitor and regulate big tech firms designated as “gatekeepers” to comply with EU’s antitrust rules.

‘People Will No Longer Be Able to Say Rubbish’

The EU has been ramping up pressure on Musk to make Twitter compliant with the bloc’s rules. After Musk had taken over Twitter in October, Breton said that if Twitter wants to do business in the bloc, it must “fly by our rules.” Breton also suggested that Musk will have to “increase” the number of content moderators on the platform in the EU.

Earlier in May, before Musk acquired Twitter, Breton told the tycoon that his plans for free speech on Twitter would be limited by the European Union’s content moderation requirements.

“He knows perfectly well what the conditions are for Twitter to continue operating in Europe,” Breton said at the time. “He will have to open his algorithms. We will have control, we will have access, people will no longer be able to say rubbish.”

In late November, Breton once again reiterated the EU’s stance on Twitter by asking for stronger online moderation. “There is still huge work ahead, as Twitter will have to implement transparent user policies, significantly reinforce content moderation, and protect freedom of speech, tackle disinformation with resolve, and limit targeted advertising,” he told Musk on a call.

In mid-December, new tensions emerged between Twitter and the EU after the platform suspended multiple journalists for allegedly violating its new policy on doxxing (i.e., the public revelation of personal information). Vera Jourova, a European Commission vice president, called the “arbitrary suspension” of the reporters as “worrying”

“This is reinforced under our #MediaFreedomAct. @elonmusk should be aware of that,” Jourova said in a tweet. “There are red lines. And sanctions, soon.”

Threat to Free Speech in US

Free speech concerns have been raised with regard to EU’s DSA regulations. Some have pointed out that if a single EU member state were to decide that a specific content needs to be removed, the content can get blocked in the entire EU. This can give certain authoritarian governments the power to control online speech in the entire bloc.

There are also worries about the EU pushing its hate speech laws into the United States. During the recent World Economic Forum meeting in Davos, Jourova suggested that laws on hate speech would come to America and be subjected to criminal penalties similar to those in several European countries.

In an interview with The Epoch Times, Cherise Trump, executive director of Speech First, a Washington-based free speech advocacy group, called EU members talking about hate speech laws coming to the United States as “chilling.”

“Why are we looking to them to give us any kind of guidance on this issue? Why do they think they have any kind of authority to tell us how to operate? We have a completely different culture than they do. We have a very liberal free speech clause in our Constitution,” she said.

Trump pointed out that there is a long history in America of upholding that there is no “hate speech” exemption to the First Amendment. This is due to the “logical reason that no one can tell you what defines hate speech.”