Key Points
- Elon Musk and Anthony Albanese have exchanged verbal blows following a planned crackdown on misinformation and disinformation.
- Under a proposed federal law, social media companies could face hefty fines for spreading false information.
- Musk called the government “fascist”, while Albanese suggested that Musk did not recognize its social responsibility.
Elon Musk has hit back at the Australian Prime Minister and doubled down on calling the government “fascist” over a planned campaign to crack down on misinformation and disinformation.
Under the bill, the powers of the communications watchdog to monitor and regulate content on digital platforms would be strengthened.
Social media companies could be fined up to 5 percent of their annual turnover if they break the law.
Musk, owner of social media platform
In response, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said social media companies had a social responsibility.
“If Mr. Musk doesn’t understand this, that says more about him than it does about my government,” he said Saturday.
The controversial billionaire doubled down on his comments Saturday night in another post, writing “Far-left fascists love censorship.”
The proposed laws would allow the media regulator to approve an enforceable industry code of conduct or introduce standards for social media companies if self-regulation is found wanting.
Most Australians want more action to be taken to stop the spread of harmful misinformation online, according to a survey by three universities.
Opposition spokesman David Coleman also criticized the bill, but avoided the label “fascist”.
“I wouldn’t use those words,” he said, but he called the prime minister’s plan “grossly incompetent,” “disregard for freedom of speech” and “generally weak, indecisive.”
Coleman said he disagreed with how intentionally misleading and harmful content was defined.
This is not the first time that Elon Musk has fought against the Australian authorities.
In April, the Electronic Security Commissioner issued an order against X, formerly known as Twitter, for .
During the months-long saga, Musk accused the Australian government of suppressing free speech.
Several politicians hit back, with the Prime Minister calling him an “arrogant billionaire”.
