A day after the European Union issued a warning to X (formerly Twitter) regarding the handling of alleged misinformation on the platform, X CEO Linda Yaccarino has defended the company’s efforts to remove content related to the Israel-Hamas conflict. Yaccarino emphasized their global responsibility to protect public discourse, ensure real-time access to information, and safeguard the platform for all users. In response to the recent events involving Hamas, X has reassigned resources and refocused internal teams to address the evolving situation. Yaccarino detailed their actions, which included identifying and removing “hundreds” of Hamas-affiliated accounts and taking measures to remove or label tens of thousands of pieces of content.
Thierry Breton, the EU commissioner for the internal market, expressed concerns about X’s potential dissemination of illegal content and disinformation in the region, possibly violating the EU’s Digital Services Act (DSA). Elon Musk, owner of X, responded to Breton’s tweet by asking him to specify the violations on X that should be removed and highlighting X’s open-source and transparent policy. Musk requested that the violations be listed so the public can review them.
Additionally, Google announced its commitment to providing authoritative information during times of crisis and breaking news on Search and YouTube. Their teams are working diligently to detect and remove violent, hateful, or terrorist content, as well as coordinated disinformation campaigns.
