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- Thierry Breton, European commissioner for Thierry Breton, said that Twitter has pulled out of EU's disinformation deal.
- In August, the agreement will be law and allow the Commission to fine those who violate it.
- Elon Musk is still trolling people by posting things that may violate EU rules.
Twitter pulled out of the voluntary code of conduct of the European Union regarding online disinformation, as its owner continued to post content that would be flagged by a future EU law.
Euractiv reported that the withdrawal of the social media site from the EU agreement on disinformation may be a sign that Elon Musk plans to stop all operations in Europe. A new law, the Digital Services Act, is due to come into effect in August. The Digital Services Act (DSA), which sets out requirements for monitoring disinformation and flagging it, will take effect in August. This law would then make the voluntary agreement for large social media websites mandatory.
A EU official told Euractiv that they "were waiting for this", and that "it was only a matter time" until Musk resigned from the agreement.
Twitter leaves EU voluntary Code of Practice Against Disinformation. "But obligations remain," European commissioner Thierry Breton tweets on Friday. You can run, but you cannot hide. As of August 25, #DSA will make it mandatory to combat disinformation, in addition to voluntary commitments. "Our teams will be ready to enforce."
The DSA is an extension of the existing voluntary agreement. It will require that large digital platforms, like Twitter, monitor and demonetize misinformation and bot-farms on their sites, provide transparent warnings regarding political advertising and empower fact checking. The New York Times reported that it does not require sites to remove content, but rather to provide users with ways to report illegal content.
Insider reported previously that adhering the current agreement would prevent the risk of violating the DSA rules, which could result in a fine up to 6% on a company's annual revenue levied by European Commission.
Musk didn't immediately respond to Insiders request for comment. Twitter's automated response was provided by its representatives.
Breton warned Musk, according to Politico, that Twitter would be banned if they did not follow the rules. Musk, who has removed Twitter from the EU Disinformation Agreement, continues to trolling by posting content which could be flagged as being in violation of the DSA or another EU content policy relating to hate speech.
Musk, in a post on Saturday, tweeted a quote that was wrongly attributed to Voltaire, "to find out who rules you, just look at who you're not allowed to criticize."
According to AP, the quote comes from neo Nazi Kevin Strom who was twice convicted for possessing child pornography.
Elon Musk (@elonmusk), May 27, 2023
One step closer to European departure
After the 2021 Facebook leaked, whistleblower Frances Haugen revealed that Facebook and its parent Meta company knowingly prioritised profit over dealing with the rampant disinformation on the platform and the racist hate speech.
Experts told Insider that Musk's posts in recent months have made several references to alt right themes and fascism. Musk shared a meme featuring Pepe the Frog with a caption that featured the word "fren," an apparent misspelling for the word friend, which is a backronym of "far right ethno-nationalist."
Cassie Miller of the Southern Poverty Law Center, a senior research analyst, told Insider that "'Fren'" is a term used by far-right actors to refer to one another in online spaces. "It's typical for the movement to try to appear innocent — in this instance, using a word that sounds like baby-talk but for those who know it stands for "far right ethnonationalist."
She said that the far-right uses coded words to hide their views and feelings from those outside their community. This creates a sense belonging for anyone who can understand their true meaning.
These posts and other extreme examples of hate-speech that have risen on the platform after Musk's takeover could be in violation of the EU framework for fighting racism and xenophobia. This would land Twitter, Musk, and the European Commission in hot water.
Euractiv reported that, with the expected crackdown after the implementation of the DSA in August, it may be easier for Twitter to stop operations in the EU.
Euractive reported that the EU was a "somewhat second market" for the platform, and "it is becoming increasingly likely that Twitter will opt to not comply with the DSA by withdrawing from Europe entirely." Twitter could be leaving Europe informally by withdrawing from the Code of Practice on Disinformation.
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By: ktangalakislippert@insider.com (Katherine Tangalakis-Lippert)
Title: Elon Musk pulled Twitter from the EU’s anti-disinformation agreement and continues to troll with alt-right memes and dogwhistles. It could be a sign he’ll close the site to Europe completely.
Sourced From: www.businessinsider.com/elon-musk-pull-twitter-european-commission-digital-services-act-2023-5
Published Date: Sun, 28 May 2023 06:53:23 +0000
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