The risks of election interference, misinformation and attempts to support a US takeover are too great. Last year, as the U.S. government debated and then followed through on banning TikTok, Republican lawmakers advanced numerous arguments against allowing a hostile foreign power to control a significant medium of public discourse. They said a social media application owned by someone who is close to an autocratic leader might be used as propaganda. They said the amount of data harvested by the app from users’ phones could pose enormous security risks, providing information to the security services of a hostile power. They said such an app could be used for espionage and tracking down locations of federal employees and contractors. They said it could be used to conduct influence operations, shaping public opinion or promoting specific narratives. They said excessive use of the app has been linked to mental health conditions and the spread of hateful conduct and inappropriate adult content, not to mention outright misinformation. They said it could be used to promote specific political candidates whose policies favour the interests of a foreign power. All these concerns are both credible and valid. What’s more, from a Canadian perspective, all these concerns apply equally to the app formerly known as Twitter. That’s why it’s time to ban Twitter/X in Canada. It has been 2 1/2 years since the notorious billionaire Elon Musk purchased Twitter, with the site being renamed X about six months later. Over that time, the site has become more overtly racist, become home to increasing levels of misinformation and been accused of interfering in several elections. Under Musk’s leadership, the social media site has gutted content moderation, unbanned alt-right hate mongers and become an openly partisan propaganda machine. Musk has frequently used spurious claims of “free speech absolutism” as an excuse for his company’s indefensible actions. To be clear, this would not hold up in court, if the U.S. court system still had a spine.
via thetyee: X Threatens Our Democracy. Canada Should Ban It