Governments worldwide are drawing a line in the sand, demanding accountability from the tech billionaires who they allege have allowed misinformation and extremism to run rampant on their social media platforms.
However, the industry titans who control the world’s most influential networks aren’t backing down. By refusing to bow to lawmakers’ requests, the likes of Elon Musk, Mark Zuckerberg, and Telegram’s Pavel Durov are setting the stage for a fierce battle over the future of free speech and online content moderation.
The tensions came to a head on Saturday (August 24) when police in France detained Durov as he disembarked his private jet at an airport near Paris. Gaining notoriety as a haven for privacy-conscious users, the Russia-born tech entrepreneur’s app, Telegram, has drawn significant criticism for its perceived role in spreading misinformation and extremist content.
The pressure has turned Durov into a nomad, hopping from country to country with a tight-knit group of programmers, to skirt regulations. After an unsuccessful stint in Germany, he set up shop in Dubai, using a web of global shell companies to stay one step ahead of government subpoenas. But, the net kept tightening.
French police say that Durov, who co-created Telegram with his brother Nikolai in 2013, was arrested as part of an investigation into crimes related to child pornography, drug trafficking, and fraudulent transactions on the platform.
Earlier, Musk had jumped into the fray, seizing upon the app's troubles to promote his favourite cause: free speech. Never one to avoid controversy, the boss of X (formerly Twitter) has been embroiled in several high-profile spats in Europe, where demands for tighter content regulation are increasing.
X and Musk are facing mounting legal challenges on multiple fronts. Brazil’s top court has threatened to ban X unless the firm swiftly appoints a local legal representative. The order is the latest escalation in a months-long feud over the alleged proliferation of election fraud claims on the platform.
Meanwhile, the EU has formally charged X with failing to adhere to social media regulations under the new Digital Services Act, threatening hefty fines for hosting toxic and illegal content.
Here in the UK, there are calls to tighten controls on platforms such as X. Officials are considering reviving provisions in the Online Safety Act to curb harmful content and misinformation.
The result could be more bruising than the attention-seeking cage match Musk and Zuckerberg floated earlier this year.
Speaking of whom, the Meta CEO recently expressed regret for yielding to what he called Joe Biden administration pressure to censor content on Facebook and Instagram during the pandemic. In a letter to a US House committee, Zuckerberg revealed that satire and humor were among the material removed in 2021 under these directives.
He also admitted that Meta briefly demoted posts about Hunter Biden before the 2020 election after an FBI warning about potential Russian disinformation — only to find that the content did not relate to such operations. The White House defended its actions as necessary for public health and safety.
Zuckerberg’s admission probably won’t be the last word in a brewing battle over the fate of online content moderation and liability.
A US judge on Tuesday (August 27) revived a lawsuit against TikTok filed by the mother of a 10-year-old girl from Delaware County, Pennsylvania, who died attempting a viral “blackout challenge” she saw on the platform.
The appeals court in Philadelphia ruled that TikTok could face liability for promoting dangerous content or using its algorithm to target children. This opened a can of worms for social media sites that have used federal protections for online publishers to shield themselves from legal action.
