European Union (EU) Commissioner Thierry Breton sent a letter to Elon Musk, owner of social media platform X (formerly Twitter), on Monday to ensure that X complies with the due diligence requirements specified in the EU’s Digital Services Act (DSA). The letter preceded Musk’s interview with former US president Donald Trump, which has since been streamed live on the social media platform.
The letter emphasizes X’s designation as a “Very Large Online Platform“ (VLOP) under the DSA, as X reaches a total amount of at least 45 million active users within the EU on a monthly basis. The designation as a VLOP imposes strict responsibilities on platforms to comply with EU law and specifically the DSA, which was adopted in 2022 with the goal of preventing illegal and harmful activities, as well as the spread of disinformation online.
Breton, the European Commissioner for Internal Market and Services, urged Musk to protect the freedom of expression and media pluralism while ensuring that appropriate measures are implemented to stop the “amplification of harmful content,” especially during live broadcasts. Breton also made reference to recent events of public unrest in the UK as an example of how harmful content can fuel hatred, violence and spread disinformation.
Linda Yaccarino, the CEO of X, strongly criticized the letter, describing it as “an unprecedented attempt to stretch a law intended to apply in Europe to political activities in the US.” She further added that it, “also patronizes European citizens, suggesting they are incapable of listening to a conversation and drawing their own conclusions.” Elon Musk, in turn, responded with a meme in which he wrote: “To be honest, I really wanted to respond with this Tropic Thunder meme, but I would NEVER do something so rude & irresponsible!” Donald Trump’s campaign spokesman Steven Cheung also condemned the letter, saying that “the European Union should mind their own business instead of trying to meddle in the U.S. Presidential election.” Donald Trump’s account on the social media platform had previously been suspended on a permanent basis, following the 2021 riots at the US Capitol, but has since been reinstated.
Tensions between the EU and X have been high in recent months, with the social media platform being formally charged by the European Commission for failing to respect social media laws in July of this year. In its preliminary findings, the Commission announced that it had identified three primary breaches related to the spread of disinformation and illegal content, the lack of transparency and the failure to provide sufficient access to public data for researchers. Elon Musk has since announced his plans to take the European institution to court.
