Musk has no choice but to cooperate with governments
Political equations for social networks have become extremely complex
The arrest of Pavel Durov in France and his accusation of facilitating various crimes on Telegram marked a new phase of government crackdowns on social network managers and operators. However, in recent years, following developments in the handling of TikTok in the US as a Chinese platform and serious scrutiny on Meta and Mark Zuckerberg, one person has been under the microscope more than anyone else: Elon Musk.
Elon Musk, by acquiring Twitter, disrupted everything in this company. He was determined to dismantle the maximum number of structures overseeing content interaction on the former Twitter, and subsequently, with unpleasant frankness and seriousness, he reinstated extremists and racists to this platform.
He himself was one of the main contributors to the spread of inappropriate content on the former Twitter and repeatedly reposted extremist racist and fake viewpoints, with fake content against Kamala Harris being one of the examples.
One of the significant scenes that clarified Musk’s destructive and anti-public stance was his support for extremist racists and their rebellion in the UK.
He openly took a stand against the UK government and even claimed that a civil war was imminent in that country. The threats from the UK government and their actions to limit the circulation of harmful content on social networks, particularly the former Twitter, did not seem very effective.
Musk always displays power, and forcing him to behave individually and manage responsibly seems impossible, but the reality is different.
Recent news indicates that the Keir Starmer government has not been intimidated by the power of big company managers and has compelled them to negotiate and coordinate with the government.
UK government officials, without granting Musk any special status, have drawn him and his company into negotiations, and the former Twitter is in talks with British authorities regarding oversight of circulating content on this platform.
From early 2025, a serious and key law in the UK will be implemented, imposing heavy fines up to 10% of the annual revenue of companies if they fail to comply with online security regulations.
With these new laws and what Pavel Durov is facing, Musk, who undoubtedly has special power and status, is not unreachable.