Elon Musk's interference in national debates angers Europe's leaders

Several European leaders have denounced, directly or indirectly, the actions of the owner of the social network X.

Transcript

00:00Europe and the richest man in the world are at odds.

00:10Several European leaders have accused Elon Musk of interfering in national debates.

00:16The French President, the German Chancellor, and the British Prime Minister have condemned

00:19the American billionaire's outbursts on his social network X.

00:24For its part, the European Commission has been conducting an investigation against the

00:27company since 2023, under the EU's Digital Services Act.

00:33MEP Damian Boselager has questioned the Commission about Elon Musk's stance and its legality,

00:39but has so far received no response.

00:42However, he believes that action needs to be taken quickly.

00:48If there is a breach of the DSA, I would like to have a fast reaction.

00:53So if basically, very simply put, Elon Musk boosting his own reach and using that boost

00:59to recommend one party, the AfD in Germany, in the German election is illegal under the

01:07current DSA, then I would require swift action to ensure that this is not the case.

01:13This interference took another form recently.

01:17On Thursday, Elon Musk will be broadcasting live on X an interview with the co-president

01:21of Germany's far-right Alternative for Germany party, which he openly supports, at a time

01:26when the country is in the midst of an election campaign.

01:30Other candidates will not have access to such exposure.

01:34The Commission points out that the freedom of expression is at the heart of European

01:38legislation.

01:39However, in this case, the EU might have another leverage.

01:44Via algorithms, you can boost a certain type of narrative, you can boost a certain type

01:49of content, you can shadow ban other type of content.

01:52So again, as you said, we've made the point clear that such a live stream in principle

01:55is not prohibited by the DSA.

01:58Now, how much is it or will it be boosted?

02:01This is what the Commission will be looking at.

02:05The institution points out that a meeting is scheduled in just over two weeks' time

02:09between the Commission, the German regulator, and the very large digital platforms, including

02:14X, with the aim of preventing interference during the election in Germany.