What is Elon Musk's feud with a Brazilian Supreme Court justice about?
BRASILIA, Aug 29 (Reuters) -A Brazilian Supreme Court justice has ordered billionaire Elon Musk to name a legal representative for his messaging platform X in Brazil within 24 hours or face suspension of the social media site in the country.
WHAT IS THE CONFLICT ABOUT?
Justice Alexandre de Moraes and Musk have been in a public feud for months, after X failed to comply with legal orders to block certain accounts accused of spreading "fake news" and hate messages. X, formerly known as Twitter, claims Moraes threatened to arrest one of the company's legal representatives in Brazil if it did not comply. Musk's platform has shut all of its Brazil offices due to what it called "censorship" by the judge, though its service has remained available for users in the country.
WHAT NEXT?
Moraes could order the social media giant to be taken down immediately in Brazil. To gain support for his decision, he could propose the suspension of X to the plenary of the top court, which would take a few days. Moraes could also freeze financial assets of Musk's Starlink by issuing an order to block the accounts of the satellite internet network that has rapidly expanded the number of its users in Brazil. Responding to a post that mentions reports that Starlink accounts had been blocked, Musk called Moraes a "dictator" on X.
HOW WOULD X BE SHUT DOWN?
Under Brazilian laws governing the internet, social media must have a representative based in the country. The judge said companies that breach Brazilian law can have their activities temporarily suspended. To shut down X's operations in Brazil, Moraes would have to order telecommunication companies to stop carrying X traffic. Users would still be able to dodge the blockage by using VPNs, and postings urging Brazilians to do so were trending on social media after Moraes' suspension threat.
WHAT IS THE POSSIBLE IMPACT?
X is widely used in Brazil and is an important means of communication, especially for politicians as a means to put out their views and attack their rivals. The country is about to enter the campaign phase for local municipal elections in October that will decide the mayors of 5,568 towns and cities.
RIGHT-LEFT DIVIDE ON THE ISSUE?
Reactions to the feud between Moraes and Musk are divided. Some X users shared Musk's criticism of the judge's decisions, saying he was undermining freedom of speech in Brazil. Others agree with the judge's view that Musk should not be above Brazilian law.
Supporters of former hard-right President Jair Bolsonaro see Musk as an ally in their opposition to Moraes' investigations into so-called digital militias that have been accused of spreading "fake news" and hate messages during Bolsonaro's government which extended from 2019 to 2022.
Reporting by Anthony Boadle in Brasilia; Editing by Matthew Lewis
Últimas noticias
Descargo de responsabilidades: Cada una de las entidades de XM Group proporciona un servicio de solo ejecución y acceso a nuestra plataforma de trading online, permitiendo a una persona ver o usar el contenido disponible en o a través del sitio web, sin intención de cambiarlo ni ampliarlo. Dicho acceso y uso están sujetos en todo momento a: (i) Términos y Condiciones; (ii) Advertencias de riesgo; y (iii) Descargo completo de responsabilidades. Por lo tanto, dicho contenido se proporciona exclusivamente como información general. En particular, por favor tenga en cuenta que, los contenidos de nuestra plataforma de trading online no son ni solicitud ni una oferta para entrar a realizar transacciones en los mercados financieros. Operar en cualquier mercado financiero implica un nivel de riesgo significativo para su capital.
Todo el material publicado en nuestra plataforma de trading online tiene únicamente fines educativos/informativos y no contiene –y no debe considerarse que contenga– asesoramiento ni recomendaciones financieras, tributarias o de inversión, ni un registro de nuestros precios de trading, ni una oferta ni solicitud de transacción con instrumentos financieros ni promociones financieras no solicitadas.
Cualquier contenido de terceros, así como el contenido preparado por XM, como por ejemplo opiniones, noticias, investigaciones, análisis, precios, otras informaciones o enlaces a sitios de terceros que figuran en este sitio web se proporcionan “tal cual”, como comentarios generales del mercado y no constituyen un asesoramiento en materia de inversión. En la medida en que cualquier contenido se interprete como investigación de inversión, usted debe tener en cuenta y aceptar que dicho contenido no fue concebido ni elaborado de acuerdo con los requisitos legales diseñados para promover la independencia en materia de investigación de inversiones y, por tanto, se considera como una comunicación comercial en virtud de las leyes y regulaciones pertinentes. Por favor, asegúrese de haber leído y comprendido nuestro Aviso sobre investigación de inversión no independiente y advertencia de riesgo en relación con la información anterior, al que se puede acceder aquí.