Elon Musk is in a heated exchange with UK Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer after Musk suggested that “civil war is inevitable” due to recent violence in the UK.
Musk made these comments on his platform X (formerly Twitter) in response to a video of fireworks being used against police.
Sir Keir Starmer’s office has criticized Musk’s comments, saying they are unjustified and that social media companies should do more to handle such content.
Musk responded by questioning whether Starmer is concerned about attacks on all communities and shared a video questioning if Britain is like the Soviet Union due to a police arrest.
Justice Minister Heidi Alexander and others have condemned Musk’s remarks as “deplorable” and “unjustifiable.”
The violence, which has lasted nearly a week, was sparked by the tragic stabbing of three girls and has been fueled by misinformation and anti-immigration sentiment online.
The Chartered Institute for IT has called for media regulator Ofcom to fine X for its role in spreading misinformation that contributed to the unrest.
Technology Secretary Peter Kyle has met with social media companies to emphasize their responsibility in controlling harmful content.
The Online Safety Act, which aims to address these issues, will become fully effective later this year. Critics argue that social media platforms like X need to do more to prevent the spread of dangerous misinformation, as noted by BBC News.
https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c5ydddy3qzgo