Twitter and Elon Musk: why free speech absolutism threatens human rights
For a man who made a fortune from electric cars, the Twitter takeover has turned into a fairly bumpy ride so far. Soon after buying the social media company for US$44 billion (£38 billion), Elon Musk said he had “no choice” about laying off a large proportion of the company’s staff.
He has already faced a backlash over his move to charge Twitter users a monthly fee for their “blue tick” verified status. And those users should also be concerned about plans from the self-proclaimed “free speech absolutist” to reduce content moderation.
Anything which weakens filters, allowing more harmful content to reach our screens, could have serious implications for human rights, both online and offline.
For it is not just governments which are responsible for upholding human rights – businesses are too. And when different human rights clash, as they sometimes do, that clash needs to be managed responsibly.
Authors:
Sarah Glozer, University of Bath
Emily Jane Godwin, University of Bath
Rita Mota, Universitat Ramon Llull’s Esade Business School (Institute for Social Innovation)