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- Elon Musk has approved a greater number of government requests to censor Twitter than his predecessor.
- Musk, a "free-speech absolutist", previously stated that he would only censor Russian media "at gunpoint."
- He says that despite criticism of Twitter's past, there is no choice but to comply.
Elon Musk now claims that Twitter is forced to censor its content after less than a full year of running it. He once claimed he would only comply with government requests "under threat of violence" to censor the site's content.
El Pais reported that under Musk's leadership Twitter has approved 83% more requests from authoritarian countries like Turkey and India for censorship than it did before his takeover last October.
Matthew Yglesias a Bloomberg columnist tweeted an article with a caption quoting Musk as calling himself a “free speech absoluteist” on Sunday. The Tesla and SpaceX CEO reacted and said: "You are such a numbskull." Please let us know where we actually had a choice, and we'll reverse it.
Yglesias replied: "Look, it's not me who bought Twitter amid a blaze about free speech principles." You're entitled to run your company however you like.
Musk wrote in March of last year: "Starlink was told by certain governments (not Ukraine), to block Russian News Sources. We won't do it unless under threat of violence. "Sorry to be an absolute free speech advocate."
Elon Musk (@elonmusk), March 5, 2022
Since he bought Twitter, these words have been often reflected in criticisms of the billionaire. He has developed a bad reputation for retaliating and former employees as well as for appearing to ban people on Twitter for "hateful behavior" when they criticize him.
Insider's comment to Musk and Twitter representatives was not immediately responded.
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By: ktangalakislippert@insider.com (Katherine Tangalakis-Lippert)
Title: Elon Musk says Twitter has no ‘actual choice’ when complying with authoritarian government requests to restrict content
Sourced From: www.businessinsider.com/musk-twitter-no-actual-choice-censorship-governmental-request-free-speech-2023-5
Published Date: Mon, 29 May 2023 02:47:33 +0000
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