EU official says Twitter abandons bloc’s voluntary pact against misinformation

LONDON — Twitter has abandoned a voluntary European Union agreement to combat misinformation online, a top EU official said on Friday.

European Commissioner Thierry Breton tweeted that Twitter has withdrawn from the EU’s disinformation “code of practice” that other major social media platforms have pledged to support. But he added that Twitter’s “obligation” remained, referring to the EU’s tough new digital rules that will come into effect in August.

“You can run but you can’t hide,” Breton said.

San Francisco-based Twitter responded with an autoresponder, like most press inquiries, and did not comment.

The decision to waive a pledge to fight misinformation appears to be the latest move by billionaire boss Elon Musk to loosen control over the social media company after he bought it last year. He’s rescinded previous anti-misinformation rules and thrown its verification system and content moderation policies into disarray as he pursues his goal of making Twitter a Digital town square.

The parent meta of Google, TikTok, Microsoft and Facebook and Instagram are among those that have applied for the EU code, which requires companies to measure their work in combating misinformation and issue regular reports. about their progress.

There have been signs Twitter is not willing to live up to its commitments. The European Commission, the governing body of the 27-nation bloc, criticized Twitter earlier this year for not providing the first full report under the code, saying it provided little specific information and did not targeted data.

Breton said that under the new digital rules incorporating codes of practice, fighting misinformation would become a “legal obligation”.

“Our teams will be ready to execute,” he said.