Social media giants like Facebook-owner Meta and Elon Musk’s X should not be allowed to use the election of US president Donald Trump as an excuse to remove guardrails limiting harmful online content, European Union (EU) politicians have said.
Calls are growing for the European Commission, the EU’s executive body, to use powers it was given under laws passed to introduce stricter regulations on online content, to push back against Mr Musk in particular.
Mr Musk, the billionaire entrepreneur and now close adviser to Mr Trump, has been criticised for recent interventions in European politics.
Mr Musk is to host a live-stream on his platform X, which was formerly Twitter, interviewing Alice Weidel, the leader of the far right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party, who he has praised in advance of German federal elections next month.
Commission officials are expected to be watching closely to try to gauge whether X is artificially boosting the live-stream with the far right politician on Thursday, in a way that could fall foul of EU rules.
Under the Digital Services Act (DSA), large tech platforms can be fined up to 6 per cent of global turnover by the commission, if found to be seriously breaching new rules to stop the spread of harmful online content.
The commission has previously opened investigations into Meta and X under the new law, which are ongoing.
A spokesman for the commission this week said the landmark EU regulations were not aimed at limiting free speech, but tackling the misuse of online platforms.
Sandro Gozi, a centrist MEP from France and close ally of French president Emmanuel Macron, said Mr Musk’s attempted meddling in European elections was “intolerable” and needed to be challenged.
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Similarly, MEPs have criticised a recent decision by Meta chief executive Mark Zuckerberg to shut down third-party fact-checking of posts and loosen the moderation of content on Facebook and Instagram.
The move, along with several senior appointments at the tech company, has been seen as an attempt to get on the good side of the incoming Trump administration.
A centre left MEP from Malta who focuses on tech policy, Alex Saliba said he had “serious concerns” about the shift by Meta.
The election of Mr Trump was being used as an opportunity by big tech companies to “push back” on rules making the internet safer. The commission needed to hold Meta and other US tech giants accountable and stop them from undoing reforms of recent years, he said.
Speaking on Wednesday, a spokesman for the commission said its officials were in constant communication with platforms like Meta and X.
“We have always been extremely clear that nothing in the DSA forces, or asks, or requests the platform to remove lawful content,” he said. The regulations related to illegal or harmful content, he said.
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