The Blubber

Brazil's highest court has ordered the immediate suspension of X (formerly Twitter) in the country after its owner, Elon Musk, refused to appoint a legal representative for the platform in Brazil. This move escalates a long-standing conflict between Musk and Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes, who is leading efforts to combat misinformation and hate speech, which he argues are threatening Brazil's democracy.

Earlier in the month, Musk shut down X’s office in Brazil in defiance of court mandates to remove accounts accused of spreading false information. In response, the court warned the company, in a message shared on X, giving it 24 hours to appoint a legal representative or face suspension.

A representative from X has yet to comment on the matter, and as of Friday evening, the platform was still operational, though Moraes's suspension order may take time to be enforced.

Globally, democracies are grappling with the influence of social media on politics and elections. Brazil has been particularly assertive in holding companies accountable for content following the 2022 presidential election. During that campaign, former President Jair Bolsonaro used online platforms to undermine confidence in Brazil’s electronic voting system, promoting baseless claims of fraud. These allegations spurred violent protests in Brasilia from Bolsonaro supporters who falsely believed President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva had lost the election.