Tech billionaire and X owner Elon Musk blasted Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez, calling him a “tyrant and traitor to the people of Spain” in response to Madrid’s plans to roll out new measures aimed at regulating digital platforms and protecting minors.
Musk reacted to a video in which Sánchez announced a new legislative package that will include laws aimed at holding social media executives accountable for failing to properly police their platforms.
The new laws are also set to ban under-16s from accessing social media, as Madrid expressed its concern with the rise of hateful and incendiary speech plaguing digital platforms today.
Sánchez said social media platforms will have to implement age verification tools that actually work, not easily bypassable checkboxes, if they wish to operate in Spain.
Musk, an outspoken critic of the Spanish premier over his immigration policies and now social media regulation, expressed his disapproval of the new measures, calling the Spanish leader “Dirty Sánchez” and adding an emoji of excrement.
The measures announced by the Spanish executive aim to combat what it considers a “failed state” of social networks, where laws are ignored and crimes are tolerated.
One of the most controversial proposals is to make social media platform executives and owners liable in court if they fail to remove hateful or illegal content — a move which would directly affect the likes of Musk.
The clash comes amid increased regulatory scrutiny of tech giants in Europe.
On Tuesday, French authorities conducted a search of X’s Paris offices as part of an investigation into algorithm manipulation and possible foreign interference, in which Musk has been called to testify.
X responded to the French raid by stating it was “disappointed by this development, but … not surprised.”
“The allegations underlying today’s raid are baseless and X categorically denies any wrongdoing. Today’s staged raid reinforces our conviction that this investigation distorts French law, circumvents due process, and endangers free speech,” the company said in a statement Tuesday.
“X is committed to defending its fundamental rights and the rights of its users,” it concluded.