In two written answers sent to MEPs on Wednesday 20 November, Commission Vice-President and Competition Commissioner Margrethe Vestager discusses the controversy that followed Thierry Breton’s letter to US billionaire Elon Musk in August.
The former European Commissioner for Internal Market had reminded the owner of X that his social network had to comply with the Digital Services Act (DSA) in the European Union and, in particular, moderate any “harmful content” that might be disseminated in the context of his interview with Donald Trump, broadcast live on the platform this summer.
When questioned on this subject by several MEPs from the Conservative and Reformist Group (ECR) (see EUROPE 13486/33), the Commission, through its Vice-President, denies any suggestion of censorship, stating that the letter “took no view on the context of the interview nor the political views of the participants in that interview. The Commission strictly follows a non-interference policy in third-country electoral processes”.
Margrethe Vestager also confirms that the letter was sent “by Mr Breton in his capacity as the Commissioner responsible for implementing the DSA, without involvement of the College of Commissioners”.
She also refutes accusations of interference and points out that the letter “merely aimed to ensure that freedom of expression and of information are effectively protected”.
As for any future action that the Commission might take against X, in the light of the ongoing investigations (see EUROPE 13452/4), she said that this has no bearing on the relationship with the United States.
See written answers: https://aeur.eu/f/efc; https://aeur.eu/f/efd (Original version in French by Isalia Stieffatre)