A courageous judge from Brazil’s Supreme Court included Elon Musk as a target of an ongoing investigation into the spread of fake news and opened a separate investigation into the executive on Sunday evening for alleged obstruction.
In his ruling, Judge Alexandre de Moraes noted that Musk began waging a public “disinformation campaign” about the top court’s actions on Saturday, and that Elon Musk continued the next day — including with comments that his social media company X would cease to comply. court orders to block certain accounts.
“The blatant conduct of obstructing Brazilian justice, the incitement to crime, the public threat of disobedience to court decisions and the future lack of cooperation of the platform are facts that disrespect the sovereignty of Brazil,” wrote de Moraes.
Musk to be investigated for alleged intentional crime instrumentalization of as part of an investigation into a network of people known as digital militias who allegedly spread defamatory fake news and threats against Supreme Court justices, according to the text of the decision. The new investigation will examine whether Musk engaged in obstruction, criminal organization and incitement activities.
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Musk did not comment on the latest developments on Sunday evening.
Brazil’s political right has long viewed de Moraes as overstepping his bounds by suppressing free speech and engaging in political persecution. As part of the investigation into digital militias, lawmakers from former President Jair Bolsonaro’s entourage were jailed and the homes of his supporters raided. Bolsonaro himself became the target of the investigation in 2021.
De Moraes’ defenders have said his decisions, while extraordinary, are legally sound and necessary to purge social media of fake news as well as extinguish threats to Brazilian democracy – notoriously highlighted by the January 8, 2023 uprising in the Brazilian capital which resembled the January 6, 2021 insurrection at the US Capitol.
Saturday, Musk — a self-proclaimed free speech absolutist — wrote on X that the platform would lift all restrictions on blocked accounts and predicted that the move risks drying up revenue in Brazil and forcing the company to close its local office.
“But principles matter more than profit,” he writes.
He then asked Brazilian users to download a VPN to maintain access if X was shut down and wrote that X would publish all of de Moraes’ requests, claiming they violated Brazilian law.
“These are the most draconian demands of any country in the world!” he later wrote.
Musk had not released Moraes’ demands as of Sunday evening and the largest blocked accounts remained blocked, indicating that X had not yet acted on Musk’s previous promises.
Moraes’ ruling warns against such a practice, saying that each blocked account that court.
Brazil’s attorney general wrote Saturday evening that it is urgent for Brazil to regulate social media platforms. “We cannot live in a society in which billionaires domiciled abroad control social networks and put themselves in a position to violate the rule of law, disrespecting court decisions and threatening our authorities. Social peace is non-negotiable,” Jorge said. Messiah wrote about X.
Brazil’s constitution was written after the 1964-1985 military dictatorship and contains a long list of ambitious goals and prohibitions against specific crimes such as racism and, more recently, homophobia. But freedom of expression is not absolute.
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