X is Set to Come Under More Scrutiny in Europe

X could face new fines in Europe, with EU investigators now looking into whether the platform is owned by Elon Musk may have violated EU rulesdue to a change in approach to allowing more speech, including more harmful content, under Musk’s more open content rules.

At the same time, EU officials have also been under pressure to investigate Musk’s own political comments and whether he is interfering in the democratic process through his X post.

As reported BloombergEU officials are are “vigorously” pushing forward in their investigation into the app, with the goal of presenting their findings to Xu as soon as possible.

Under the EU’s Digital Services Act (DSA), social platforms must adhere to strict rules on content moderation, including the spread of misinformation in their apps. The commission launched an investigation into X back in 2023, shortly after Musk took over the app, to assess whether X’s “freedom of speech, not outreach” approach violates these guidelines.

As noted, EU officials are also under pressure to step up their investigations into Xu, due to Musk’s growing personal interest in European politics.

Musk has personally confirmed the controversial one The Alternative for Germany (AfD) party, which many consider far-right extremist group. At the same time, Musk also shared his strong opinions on other EU regional leadership decisions, while Musk also under scrutiny in Great Britain over his efforts to influence British politics.

The controversial billionaire’s regional meddling has prompted further questions about his use of X, and whether he will also try to weaponize X’s algorithms to push content that favors whichever perspective he chooses.

Indeed, EU officials will be watching closely as Musk conducts the X interview today with AfD leader Alice Weidel.

The broader concern, as noted, is that Musk may be artificially boosting content in order to maximize the impact of the candidate he chose to support. And after the US election, in which Musk played a key role in boosting Trump’s campaign, there are concerns that it could allow Musk to wield significant political power, influencing the democratic process.

Which is also against the DSA regulations, in relation to political neutrality. That is not specifically what this current investigation is about, but it is another factor in the wider approach, as the EU Commission seeks to curb political bias.

And indeed, it seems that this may have been Musk’s plan for X from the beginning.

Coming from my own past experience with US operatives, who allegedly used Twitter to destabilize political leadership in South American nationsin order to secure better deals for natural resources (including lithium, which Tesla needs for its cars), Musk seems to have decided to use his capacity at X to bring Trump to power, as a demonstration of his ability to influence elections.

And since that ultimately leads to a Trump victory, Musk could now be making deals to secure the same for other leaders in other regions, with deals in place that will ensure he gets favorable treatment for his companies if those candidates and parties succeed.

As such, the ideological perspectives that Musk touts seem less true and more a means to ensure the outcome he wants, in order to gain strategic advantages to maximize his own empire-building plans.

That might be a pessimistic view of Musk’s intentions. But if there’s a chance the billionaire wants to wield that kind of power, then officials in each region will look into such activities and try to understand how, exactly, Musk can access it.

And the EU Commission has a good record of punishing those who break its rules. As a result, you can expect Musk and X to clash with multiple governments and regional regulators over the coming years, as Musk shows no signs of letting up in his personal mission to win over voters around the world.

In response to recent reports of increased EU surveillance, X CEO Linda Yaccarino said yes this is “clear, illegal retaliation for allowing open discussion for all to hear.”

Which is a common refrain that X seems to use to counter any scrutiny of his actions.