The European Union Threatens Musk Over Trump Interview; Musk Fires Back With Meme

The European Union threatened X owner Elon Musk on Monday ahead of his interview with Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump, warning that he needs to censor potentially “harmful content” or else his company could be punished.

EU industry chief Thierry Breton said in his letter that the warning was being made because users on X promoted content on the social media platform about the disturbing events that have been unfolding in the United Kingdom surrounding migrants and large Muslim gangs.

“I am compelled to remind you of the due diligence obligations set out in the Digital Services Act (DSA),” Breton said. “As the individual entity ultimately controlling a platform with over 300 million users worldwide, of which one third in the EU, that has been designated as a Very Large Online Platform, you have the legal obligation to ensure X’s compliance with EU law and in particular the DSA in the EU.”

Breton said that X must make sure “effective mitigation measures are put in place regarding the amplification of harmful content in connection with relevant events, including live streaming, which, if unaddressed, might increase the risk profile of X and generate detrimental effects on civic discourse and public security.”

“This is important against the background of recent examples of public unrest brought about by the amplification of content that promotes hatred, disorder, incitement to violence, or certain instances of disinformation,” he added.

Breton noted that the EU already has a case against X and that if Musk does not take steps to restrict free speech in his interview with Trump that the EU could add evidence against him in the case.

“As the relevant content is accessible to EU users and being amplified also in our jurisdiction, we cannot exclude potential spillovers in the EU,” he said. “Therefore, we are monitoring the potential risks in the EU associated with the dissemination of content that may incite violence, hate and racism in conjunction with major political – or societal – events around the world, including debates and interviews in the context of elections.”

Musk fired back with a response aimed directly at Breton’s post on X where Breton posted the letter.

“To be honest, I really wanted to respond with this Tropic Thunder meme, but I would NEVER do something so rude & irresponsible!” Musk wrote.

Musk included the meme that showed a line from the “Tropic Thunder” movie that said: “Take a big step back and literally f**k your own face!”

To be honest, I really wanted to respond with this Tropic Thunder meme, but I would NEVER do something so rude & irresponsible! https://t.co/jL0GDW5QUx pic.twitter.com/XhUxCSGFNP

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) August 12, 2024