Elon Musk said, in an interview published on May 31 on the Babylon Bee profile, that all social networks need to open and disclose their content blocking parameters. According to the billionaire, this measure is important so that the general public is aware of what is being censored and so that the practice does not occur secretly. “There is a huge amount of content that is currently limited on Facebook, Google, Instagram,” Musk said.
He also stated that these practices are much simpler to implement than one might assume. Leaving some profiles “in the basement”, without being indicated or with low visibility and reach is one of them. Musk even cites other disguised ban strategies. “If you simply move a result to page two, the visibility of that link is 100% reduced, since nobody consults the second page of Google searches”, he said.
Regarding cases of violation of freedom of expression practiced by Twitter, Musk said that he works to achieve the greatest possible transparency. He cited the recent discovery of an algorithm that significantly reduced the reach of posts that contained certain “forbidden” or unsuitable expressions. “We are doing a Twitter reconsideration at this point. Don’t take my word for it, but look at the algorithm that’s bringing you the results we’re presenting. I want to make sure that everything is dealt with openly, with no concealments.”
Not everything is flowers
Since buying and taking over Twitter, Musk has openly defended free speech as one of the tenets of his tenure. However, it is not always possible to maintain the guidelines he advocates. In accordance with legislation and legal decisions in several countries, Twitter has banned posts or profiles. In Brazil, in the last elections, the Superior Electoral Court (TSE) decreed the closing of profiles such as those of Marcos Cintra, vice-presidential candidate on the ticket of Soraya Thronicke, and parliamentarian Nikolas Ferreira, for having raised suspicions about the integrity of the ballot boxes and elections in the country in their posts.
In the United States, Youtube has just revoked the veto, in force since December 2020, of videos that questioned fairness in the last election there. According to a statement published on the platform’s blog, “the ability to openly debate political ideas, even those that are controversial or based on rebutted assumptions, is critical to the functioning of a democratic society, especially in the midst of election season.”
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