The social network Twitter worries in the upper echelons of the Audiovisual Communication Regulatory Authority (Arcom). Roch-Olivier Maistre, president of the French regulator, sent a letter to Twitter’s European headquarters in Ireland.
The “sincerity of democratic debate” in question
The missive consulted by several media, including Le Figaro, is worried about cuts in the workforce. In recent weeks, the social network has offloaded a large part of its employees. More than 5,000 of the 7,500 employees are said to have been sacked. At the same time, the contracts of at least 75% of the subcontractors were cancelled. Recently, Twitter has experienced a new wave of resignations after the ultimatum of the new boss of the company. Decisions that come a few weeks after the takeover of the platform by Elon Musk.
“Arcom would like to express to you its deep concern about the direct consequences of such decisions on Twitter’s ability to maintain a safe environment for users of its service. […] Twitter is one of the most used platforms in France. As a result, it raises systemic issues regarding the sincerity of democratic debate and the protection of the public”explains Arcom in its letter.
Will Twitter be in compliance with the law?
Through this letter, the regulator wishes to know whether Twitter is “able to meet the obligations imposed by law” and asks the social network to confirm its goodwill before November 24. The “human and technological resources devoted to compliance with these obligations”set up to“effectively ensure the moderation of illegal content and practices”, need to be known to the regulator before this deadline. In other words, Arcom asks Twitter for transparency and compliance with the Digital Services Act (DSA) at European level, as well as the law against the manipulation of information passed in 2018 at national level.
These requirements will not be followed by sanctions, as Arcom cannot legislate directly with the US platform. On the other hand, from the summer of 2023, the European law on digital services (DSA) will make it possible to sanction up to 6% of global turnover platforms that do not comply with the legislation. In the event of repeated serious sanctions, the EU could even ban the platform within its space, according to The world.
Friday, November 18, Elon Musk announced the change in the rules in force on Twitter to leave more room for freedom of expression. Negative or hateful tweets will be demonetized and their audience reduced, but they will not necessarily be deleted.