Australia PM hits back at Musk after ‘fascists’ quip

SYDNEY – Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese hit back at Mr Elon Musk on Sept 14, after the technology mogul called his government “fascists” for proposing laws that will fine social media giants for spreading misinformation.

Australia introduced a “combating misinformation” Bill on Sept 12, which includes sweeping powers to fine tech giants up to 5 per cent of their annual turnover for breaching online safety obligations.

“Fascists,” Mr Musk posted that day on his social media platform X, formerly known as Twitter.

But Mr Albanese fired back at Mr Musk on Sept 14, saying social media “has a social responsibility”. “If Mr Musk doesn’t understand that, that says more about him than it does about my government,” he told reporters.

The exchange between Mr Musk and Australian officials is the latest in his long-running spat with Canberra over social media regulation.

Australia’s government is exploring a raft of new measures that will see social media companies take greater accountability for the content on their platforms – including a ban for those under 16 years old.

The country’s online watchdog took Mr Musk’s company to court earlier in 2024, alleging it had failed to remove “extremely violent” videos that showed a Sydney preacher being stabbed.

But it abruptly dropped its bid to force a global takedown order on X after Mr Musk scored a legal victory in a preliminary hearing, a move he celebrated as a triumph for free speech.

Mr Musk, a self-described “free speech absolutist”, has clashed with politicians and digital rights groups worldwide, including in the European Union, which could decide within months to take action against X with possible fines.

In Brazil, where X has effectively been suspended after it ignored a series of court directives, Mr Musk has responded by blasting the judge as an “evil dictator cosplaying as a judge”. AFP