On Friday, US officials severely criticized a criminal investigation by France against the X social network owned by Elon Musk, a billionaire, on suspicion of foreign interference.
In one of its accounts on X, the US State Department, Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labor said that: An activist French prosecutor, as part of a criminal investigation, has requested information about the proprietary algorithm of an X, and has typified X as an organized crime group.
Democratic governments are not meant to suppress a speech they do not like but to give a voice to everybody. Americans will stand up to support the right to free speech against foreign attempts of censorship.”
Prosecutors in Paris on cybercrime asked police to investigate on July 11, suspecting possible crimes — including altering and accessing data in automated operations, in a criminal mob.
The social media company has refuted the allegations last week terming it as being politically motivated.
X also claimed that it had rejected the demand by the prosecutor to gain its access to the recommendation algorithm and real-updates data.
It comes after two complaints in January about the alleged foreign interference targeting French politics via the X algorithm.
Objecting to this was one of the members of parliament (MP), Eric Bothorel, of the centrist party of President Emmanuel Macron, who lamented the diminished range of voices and choices on the platform since Musk had control of the platform and he had been cutting his own intervention in the management of the platform.
According to X, it had categorically denied all accusations and the investigation is misinterpreting the French law to push an agenda and suppress the freedom of speech eventually.
His venture to European politics, such as active support of the rightwing party of Alternative for Germany (AfD) in the approaching February parliamentary elections, has angered Tesla and SpaceX chief Musk.
After announcing the investigation, Bothorel added: Democracy cannot be too weak to leave it to owners of digital platforms to tell citizens what to think, who the citizens should vote and even hate.
