Report from MediaPost
In Brief – The European Commission has announced the approval of X’s plan to address several Digital Services Act (DSA) compliance shortcomings identified by the regulator. The decision follows the €120 million fine imposed on the social media platform last December over the alleged deceptive design of X’s blue verification checkmark, inadequate transparency surrounding its advertising repository, and failure to provide researchers with access to public data. The Commission says that X’s remediation plan satisfies requirements related to advertising transparency and researchers’ access to platform data. X will introduce additional search filters based on advertising content and targeting criteria, display search results directly within its ad repository, and improve researchers’ access to public platform data, including streamlining API access, offering access free of charge, and significantly reducing application processing times. X has six months to implement the measures, which will be verified through an independent external audit, while the Commission says that it will continue to monitor the platform for systemic risks to users and society.
Context – Of all the digital policy issues animating the Trump Administration, pushing back against what they believe is anti-populist online censorship in Europe is the only one with backing across the spectrum of US conservatives, pulling in generally anti-Big Tech populists, many of whom have built alliances in Europe. They believe they have beaten back anti-conservative policies on the big social media platforms in the US but see a progressive ecosystem of government agencies, advocacy groups and “researchers” continuing to police online political speech in Europe. The DSA investigation of X remains a potential flashpoint. The blue checkmark and advertising transparency issues are the less politically sensitive aspects, but the Commission still has open an investigation of ideologically fraught issues including X’s content moderation practices, whether it properly counters so-called information manipulation, and how its algorithms boost content.