Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has publicly denounced celebrity businessman Elon Musk, describing him as an “arrogant billionaire who thinks he is above the law”.
These fighting words are the latest salvo fired during escalating tensions between the Australian Government and Musk's social media platform, X, over the platform’s handling of violent content.
Violent videos taken down
The stoush began after footage of a stabbing in a Sydney church circulated on X.
Despite directives from Australia's eSafety Commissioner to remove the violent imagery, X initially restricted access only within Australia, prompting the Federal Court to intervene.
Late Monday, the court mandated a two-day global injunction against X, blocking all posts featuring the footage.
Speaking to Sky News, Albanese criticised Musk’s defiance, saying: “Australians will shake their head when they think that this billionaire is prepared to go to court fighting for the right to sow division and to show violent videos.”
He emphasised the social responsibility that comes with managing a platform like X, especially when it involves content that could harm the public.
Albanese reiterated his stance to the ABC, affirming his view of Musk as someone out of touch with societal norms.
“What the eSafety commissioner is doing is her job to protect the interests of Australians,” he said. “And the idea that someone would go to court for the right to put up violent content on a platform shows how out of touch Mr Musk is.”
Albanese's stance so far seems to have support on the other side of the political aisle, a rare thing in modern politics.
Musk strikes back
Musk took to Twitter to fire back at the Australian Government, framing his hostility as a concern about the implications of global censorship based on the demands of individual nations.
He argued that complying with one country's requests could lead to a slippery slope of internet censorship worldwide. “We have already censored the content in question for Australia, pending legal appeal, and it is stored only on servers in the USA,” Musk tweeted.
Overnight, Musk also posted a meme implying that X stands for “truth” and “free speech,” contrasting it with other platforms that he accused of censoring content and spreading propaganda.
He sarcastically thanked the Australian Prime Minister for highlighting X's commitment to free speech, further intensifying the public discourse.
It will be interesting to observe this battle as it unfolds, because the high-profile war of words has real-life implications for the way we balance online safety and freedom of expression, locally and on a global scale, at a time when misinformation and violent imagery is rife.