European Commission Vice-President Vera Jourova, who is responsible for press freedom and fundamental rights, is once again warning Twitter and its boss Elon Musk about the fight against disinformation.
Recalling that freedom of expression has its limits, she said in an interview with journalists organised by the European Newsroom that the Commission would soon be in a position to sanction the major Internet platforms if they fail to comply with European legislation.
Back in February, the Commission criticised Twitter for being the only signatory to the European charter against disinformation to have submitted an incomplete activity report. The company had provided little or no explanation on how it sought to combat interference by foreign actors and disinformation.
However, X will soon be subject to all the obligations of the new Digital Service Act, DSA, which requires it to be proactive in this area.
Commissioner Jourova said she would like to explain the Commission's philosophy to Musk: it defends freedom of expression, which was why it developed the code of good practice against disinformation, but this freedom has its limits, she said.
X is on the list, published on Tuesday, of very large online platforms and search engines that reach 45 million active users a month in Europe, which makes them subject to the strictest DSA obligations. The Commission will have direct supervisory powers over them and will charge them a fee.
The platforms will have to convince the Commission that they are doing everything necessary to manage the risk of misinformation, Ms Jourova said.
Penalties of up to 6% of global turnover are provided for in the event of non-compliance. The Commission could even ask a court to temporarily take the site offline, which Ms. Jourouva likened to withholding a driving licence. She stressed that in the event of non-compliance, the Commission would apply the law.
The DSA obligations will come into force in four months’ time, which still leaves room for dialogue, according to the Commissioner. She said she felt increasingly less at ease on Twitter because of the “aggressive, unregulated Russian propaganda.”
