Source: AFP
Tech bad boy Elon Musk on Tuesday vowed to challenge demands that social media platform X take down video of a recent stabbing at a Sydney church.
Australia’s Federal Court on Monday gave the platform 24 hours to remove videos of an Assyrian bishop being beheaded during a recent attack.
The Australian eSafety Commission had sought the injunction saying X had ignored previous takedown notices.
Musk hit back at the watchdog on Tuesday, saying the content had already been removed for users in Australia.
“We have already censored the content in question for Australia, pending legal action, and it is only stored on servers in the US.”
As the deadline approached, the videos were unavailable to users in Australia except those using a VPN or other location masking service.
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Musk claimed Australia was trying to impose a global ban.
“Our concern is that if ANY country is allowed to censor content for ALL countries, which the Australian ‘eSafety Commissioner’ demands, then what is to stop any country from controlling the entire internet,” the billionaire posted on X.
‘Absolutely disgusting’
The matter will return to court this week, where a judge will decide whether to extend the temporary injunction.
A third hearing will follow where lawyers for the eSafety Commission will seek a permanent injunction and civil penalties against X, a spokesman told AFP.
Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese criticized Musk, whom he described as an “arrogant billionaire” who “thinks he’s above the law”.
“The idea that someone would go to court over the right to post violent content on a platform shows how unknown Mr. Musk is,” Albanese told public broadcaster ABC.
Tasmanian senator Jacqui Lambie has called for Musk to be jailed, saying he has “no conscience” and his behavior is “absolutely disgusting”.
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“Honestly the guy should be jailed,” he said.
“Toxicity and Hate”
Bishop Mar Mari Emmanuel was allegedly slashed on the head and chest by a 16-year-old suspect last week, sparking riots by followers of the Assyrian Christian church in western Sydney.
The video of the bloody attack, which was widely shared on social media platforms, has been accused by Australian authorities of fueling community tensions.
Australia has spearheaded efforts to hold tech giants accountable for what their users post online under a groundbreaking “Online Safety Act” passed in 2021.
eSafety Commissioner Julie Inman Grant — a former Twitter employee — is fighting a series of legal battles with X, trying to hold the platform responsible for violent and disturbing content.
He has expressed concerns in the past about an increase in “toxicity and hate” on the platform following Musk’s acquisition.
A commission spokesman said Tuesday that it also asked other companies, including Google, Snap and TikTok, to remove the material — which they had done.
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“While it may be difficult to completely eliminate harmful content from the internet, particularly as users continue to repost it, eSafety requires platforms to do what is practical and reasonable to minimize the harm it can cause to Australians and the Australian community,” the spokesman said. .
The watchdog recently slapped X with a A$610,500 (US$388,000) fine for failing to demonstrate how it combats child sexual abuse content.
University of New South Wales law professor Rob Nicholls told AFP the church stabbing case would test new legal waters.
The eSafety Commission has issued takedown orders in the past, and the social media giants have always complied. “We’ve never seen this before,” he said.
“It’s not like Australia is unique in having a content-related takedown regime. Most social media businesses have infrastructure in place to deal with a takedown notice.”
“Maybe what we need to do is fine-tune the law,” Nicholls said.
Source: AFP
