Elon Musk, a staunch defender of freedom of expression, said he was ready on Tuesday to lift Donald Trump’s permanent account suspension implemented after the Capitol attack, a decision that was “morally wrong” in his eyes.
I think that was a mistake because it isolated many countries and ultimately did not prevent Donald Trump from being heard. since he is now on his own social network, underline the entrepreneur at a conference organized by FinancialTimes.
There should be a permanent ban very rare and reserved examples for fake accounts, he added during his video intervention.
Also, if he actually buys Twitter for 44 billion US dollars (57 billion Canadian dollars), I will remove the permanent suspension of the former president, ”Musk said.
The operation is not over yet. If Tesla’s boss’s offer is accepted by the board of directors, shareholders must still approve the deal and some questions still need to be resolvedMr. remembered. Musk. In the best case, this can be done in two or three months.
Bet on temporary suspension
But the multi-billionaire, who wants to withdraw Twitter from the Stock Exchange, has already stated that he wants to make it a bastion of freedom of expression, which he considers to be ignored by too strict content moderation.
On Tuesday, he clarified his preference for temporary suspensions or removal of the most problematic tweets rather than an outright ban.
The former US president was banned from Twitter on January 8, 2021 because of the risk of inciting violence following the violent attack on the Capitol.
With 88 million subscribers, the platform has been until then the primary day-to-day communication tool.
Twitter founder and former boss Jack Dorsey felt at the time that Donald Trump’s sideline was the maid decision, but nevertheless constitutes a failure at assign a squat that seemed to him dangerous compared to the power held by large enterprises.
Mr. himself. Trump has decided not to return to the social network, saying he wants to stay on the Truth Social platform he launched in February. However, it is still hard to grow, the former White House tenant accounts with just 2.7 million subscribers.
A site also still left
Remove the ban on the former president it doesn’t mean that anyone can say whatever they want, if they say something illegal or destructive to the worldunderlined Mr. Musk.
But I think permanent bans are primarily undermining trust in Twitter as a public place where everyone can express their opinion.he says.
He also felt Twitter politically biased on the leftsince based in San Francisco, and will be more neutral.
Monday, after an interview with European Commissioner Thierry Breton in Texas, the businessman assured that he fully agrees with new European rules on the regulation of social networks, which will force major platforms to better combat illegal content.
A racing to the bottom
For the director of the American PEN freedom of expression organization, Suzanne Nossel, Elon Musk should clarify his message.
Is he saying that no Trump or anyone else can tweet that will be the basis for permanent dismissal? Does he decide that Trump is not engaged in inciting violence, or is he saying that a sitting president inciting his followers to violence or insurrection is acceptable practice on Twitter? he wondered.
Angelo Carusone, director of the NGO Media Matters for America, is concerned about the effects of such a decision.
After Donald Trump, other personalities, including the far right, will be allowed to return to Twitter. And this will create a bad pressure on other social networks like Facebook, triggered a career at the bottomhe was afraid.
Source: Radio-Canada
