Free Speech and Social Media Under Fire Around the Globe

​The recent wave of government actions against social media platforms — from Brazil’s suspension of X to France’s charges against Telegram’s CEO — reveals a downward global trend in official respect for free speech in the digital age. Framed as efforts to protect public safety, national security, or the democratic process, governments around the world are increasingly bold in controlling what can be said and who can speak online.
 
While some actions target harmful content, many governments (including, as Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg attests, our own) risk outright censorship that stifles dissent and restricts access to information.
 
Exhibit A is Brazil, in which the Supreme Court, led by Justice Alexandre de Moraes, ordered a nationwide block on X, formerly Twitter, after the platform refused to appoint a legal representative in the country. This decision follows confrontations over X’s refusal to remove content and block accounts linked to “disinformation” and “extremism” – even though some of the blocked accounts are those of a Brazilian senator and prominent critics of the current administration. X’s Elon Musk understandably is concerned that such “regulation” could be used to censor dissent and control public discourse. So he refused to appoint a legal representative who almost surely would be arrested and prosecuted.
 
Justice de Moraes frames his efforts as a battle against misinformation, citing X's failure to comply with directives as evidence of its disregard for Brazilian law. But Elon Musk, a "free speech absolutist," correctly portrays these actions as overreach by an authoritarian judge.
 
France recently charged Telegram CEO Pavel Durov with failing to prevent illicit activities on his platform. Some argue that pressure from the U.S. Congress and Biden Administration for TikTok to divest from its Chinese parent company is also censorship, though many (Protect The 1st included) have concerns about TikTok’s threats to the data privacy of 170 million Americans and national security.
 
What is clear is that governments are more aggressively regulating platforms they see as threats to public order or sovereignty. Each presents a mix of justifications and overreach. Brazil's crackdown on X is seen by some as necessary to safeguard democracy, while others view it as an overreaction that threatens rights. France’s prosecution of Durov is an overreach if it criminalizes encryption and undermines privacy. Concerns over the data practices of TikTok, its parent ByteDance, and the Chinese government are legitimate, while cracking down on perceived “Chinese-friendly” content would be a clear First Amendment issue.
 
It is true that social media platforms wield considerable power to shape public discourse and influence the conduct of elections; however, methods to counter these threats risk stifling dissent, restricting information, and setting dangerous precedents for censorship. For example, targeting Starlink, Musk's satellite internet provider, for X’s fines seems excessive. Similarly, arresting Durov risks conflating the platform with the actions of Telegram’s users.
 
Is there a better path? Regulators should focus on transparency, accountability, and due process rather than outright bans. Overregulation risks losing a vibrant, open digital space where even controversial ideas can be freely exchanged. If not carefully calibrated, efforts to protect will become efforts to suppress.
 
It won’t be easy, but democratic governments must both defend against illegal content and protect principles of free speech and the robust sharing of information – even when that information is deemed to be wrong.