(Reuters) – Emmanuel Macron said he had a “clear and honest” discussion with Twitter owner Elon Musk about the social media platform’s content moderation policies, just a day after the French president had flagged his concerns on the issue.
“Transparent user policies, significant reinforcement of content moderation and protection of freedom of speech: efforts have to be made by Twitter to comply with European regulations,” Macron said in a tweet after his meeting with Musk on Friday afternoon.
On Thursday, Macron – on a visit to the United States – said in an interview with television show Good Morning America that he believed there were “responsibilities and limits” to free speech.
Researchers have reported a surge in hate speech on the social media platform after free speech advocate Musk announced an amnesty for accounts suspended under the company’s previous leadership that had not broken the law or engaged in “egregious spam.”
Billionaire Musk took over Twitter on Oct. 27, paying $44 billion for the company, and has moved quickly to initiate a number of changes to product and staff.
(Reporting Akriti Sharma; Editing by Sandra Maler and Rosalba O’Brien)
