BRAZ-EXIT

Elon Musk to Shutter X’s Doors in Brazil Over Content Laws

“To protect the safety of our staff, we have made the decision to close our operation in Brazil, effective immediately,” the social media company announced Saturday.

Elon Musk’s X announced it will be pulling operations out of Brazil on Saturday, citing an order from Brazilian Judge Alexandre de Moraes which imposes a fine on the company for allowing accounts that spread misinformation on its platform, according to NBC. “Last night, Alexandre de Moraes threatened our legal representative in Brazil with arrest if we do not comply with his censorship orders,” the company wrote on X on Saturday. “As a result, to protect the safety of our staff, we have made the decision to close our operation in Brazil, effective immediately.” Moreas’ order required X to pay $3,653 every day the company failed to comply with the order. The fine is a part of Moreas’ attempts to curb “digital militias,” as he calls them, and allies of former far-right Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro from operating on X. “The people of Brazil have a choice to make—democracy, or Alexandre de Moraes,” the statement concluded. “The decision to close the 𝕏 office in Brazil was difficult, but, if we had agreed to @alexandre’s (illegal) secret censorship and private information handover demands, there was no way we could explain our actions without being ashamed,” Musk added in a follow-up post on X, Saturday.

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Owen LavineBreaking News Intern

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