Democrats question Musk regarding his ‘adverse position’ towards independent research

Three Democratic lawmakers have raised concerns to Elon Musk regarding his social media platform’s “hostile stance” towards independent research. This follows X (formerly known as Twitter) suing a nonprofit research group that discovered an increase in hate speech after Musk’s acquisition.

In an exclusive letter shared with CNBC, Reps. Lori Trahan, D-Mass., Adam Schiff, D-Calif., and Sean Casten, D-Ill., wrote to Musk and X Corp. CEO Linda Yaccarino, stressing the importance of independent research in understanding the proliferation of hate speech and extremism online. The lawmakers questioned X’s business practices since Musk acquired the platform.

The lawmakers referenced X’s recent lawsuit against the Center for Countering Digital Hate (CCDH), which found an increase in hate speech on the platform after Musk’s takeover. X accused the CCDH of obtaining data illegally and falsely claiming statistical support for the platform’s overwhelming harmful content.

The lawmakers criticized X for resisting researchers’ efforts to hold social media platforms accountable and conduct assessments in the public interest by filing the lawsuit against the CCDH.

This is not the first time the lawmakers have addressed their concerns to X. They previously sent a letter in March, but the company had not responded. They now expect a response from X by August 15.

In their previous set of questions, the lawmakers asked X to commit to ending the practice of retaliating against journalists and researchers who publish negative reports about the platform. This time, they also queried whether X had successfully reduced hate speech and extremist content on its platform, and if this had been verified by any third parties.

In response, X stated that the CCDH had been spreading misleading information about the company, hindering public discussion. X asserted that platform safety and free expression are not conflicting values.

According to X’s blog post, the company discovered that the CCDH had accessed its data without approval from another company, Brandwatch. Brandwatch claimed that metrics from their analysis tool were taken out of context in the CCDH’s report. X also alleged that the CCDH had violated its terms of service by scraping its platform.

CCDH founder and CEO Imran Ahmed criticized the lawsuit, calling it “straight out of the authoritarian playbook.” He accused Musk of trying to target the messenger who exposes the toxic content on his platform rather than addressing the toxic environment he has created.

For the full letter, please click here.