Brazil is poised to suspend the services of the social media platform X, formerly known as Twitter, after the company failed to appoint a legal representative in the country by the deadline set by the Brazilian Supreme Court. The decision comes amidst a growing conflict between the platform’s owner, Elon Musk, and Brazilian authorities, revolving around allegations of censorship and legal compliance. The dispute has escalated to involve Musk’s other company, Starlink, with Brazilian authorities freezing its finances.
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- Brazil is set to suspend the social media platform X after it missed the deadline to appoint a legal representative in the country.
- Brazilian law requires all internet companies to have a legal representative to handle legal decisions and actions.
- X removed its previous legal representative in Brazil, citing threats of arrest from Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes.
- Justice de Moraes had given X a deadline to appoint a new representative or face a shutdown until compliance.
- Elon Musk, owner of X, responded by criticizing de Moraes, calling him a “tyrant” and a “dictator” for his actions.
- The dispute centers around de Moraes’ orders for X to block certain accounts accused of spreading misinformation, which Musk views as censorship.
- Many of the accounts targeted for blocking are supporters of former Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro, who deny his 2022 election defeat.
- Musk has challenged the Brazilian court’s decision, stating it infringes on free speech and reactivated the blocked accounts.
- Following these actions, de Moraes initiated investigations into Musk for spreading false information and alleged obstruction.
- In a related move, Brazilian authorities have frozen the finances of Starlink, Musk’s satellite internet company, alleging it is responsible for fines levied against X.
