When billionaire Elon Musk acquired Twitter—now X—in 2022, some feared that the self-avowed free-speech “absolutist” would turn the platform into a free-for-all for disinformation. Now, as a Brazilian judge seeks to crack down on fake news on social media, he and Musk have found each other at odds in a growing spat that could have significant consequences for Musk, Brazil, and X.
On Saturday, X’s Global Government Affairs team posted that it had been forced to block “certain popular accounts in Brazil” without, in its view, sufficient explanation. It was prohibited, it said, from publicizing what accounts were impacted as well as what court or judge issued the orders.
“We believe that such orders are not in accordance with the Marco Civil da Internet or the Brazilian Federal Constitution, and we challenge the orders legally where possible,” the post said. “The people of Brazil, regardless of their political beliefs, are entitled to freedom of speech, due process, and transparency from their own authorities.”
Tensions escalated when Musk, in a series of posts, called out the judge, Brazil’s Federal Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes, by name and said X would not abide by his orders no matter the consequences.
“These are the most draconian demands of any country on Earth!” Musk said in one post.
“We will probably lose all revenue in Brazil and have to shut down our office there,” he said in another. “But principles matter more than profit.”
“This judge has brazenly and repeatedly betrayed the…
