A lawsuit filed by X Corp., belonging to Elon Musk, against the non-profit organization Center for Countering Digital Hate has been dismissed by a federal judge. The organization has been keeping track of the rise in hate speech on the site ever since it was bought out by the owner of Tesla.

The company X, previously known as Twitter, claimed that the researchers at the center had violated the site’s terms of service by collecting public tweets in an inappropriate manner. This led to X losing millions of dollars as advertisers left due to the company’s reports on the increase of hate speech.

On Monday, Judge Charles Breyer of the U.S. District Court dismissed the lawsuit, stating in his ruling that its sole intention was to punish the nonprofit organization for exercising its right to free speech.

X accused the charity of scraping their website for information, violating their terms of service. However, the judge determined that X did not provide evidence of any financial losses resulting from the scraping, known as “technological harms.”

X had requested a significant amount of money in compensation, stating that the publications from the nonprofit organization resulted in advertisers leaving and a decrease in ad revenue.

The judge sided with CCDH’s argument, stating that X is not eligible to receive compensation for the actions of third parties based on CCDH’s reports or expression of speech.

The non-governmental organization has branches in the United States and United Kingdom and frequently releases reports on the presence of hate speech, extremism, and harmful conduct on social media platforms such as X, TikTok, and Facebook. The organization has produced multiple critical reports on Musk’s leadership, highlighting an increase in anti-LGBTQ hate speech and climate change misinformation since he acquired ownership.

On X, the social media platform released a statement expressing their opposition to the court’s ruling and stating their intention to challenge it through an appeal process.

According to Imran Ahmed, the individual who started and runs the center, the legal action is essentially a contradictory attempt at bullying by a very wealthy person who claims to advocate for freedom of speech but is instead using their money to censor those who oppose them. Ahmed believes that this lawsuit highlights the necessity for a national law that mandates tech companies to disclose more information about their actions, in order for the general population to comprehend the influence these dominant platforms have on our society.

Ahmed stated that they have high hopes that this significant decision will encourage researchers focused on public interests to persist and strengthen their important efforts in holding social media platforms responsible for the harmful spread of hate and false information.

Roberta Kaplan, the center’s attorney, said the dismissal of X’s suit shows “even the wealthiest man cannot bend the rule of law to his will.”

According to Kaplan’s email to reporters, we are currently in a time where bullies have significant influence, mainly due to social media. It can be challenging to confront these bullies, which is why organizations such as the Center for Countering Digital Hate are crucial. The speaker expresses their pride and gratitude in representing CCDH.

Other organizations have also noted an increase in offensive content on X since Musk acquired the platform in October 2022. In November, major advertisers such as IBM, NBCUniversal, and Comcast announced that they were no longer advertising on X after a report from the progressive group Media Matters revealed that their ads were being displayed next to content that praised Nazis. This has been another obstacle for X as it tries to regain the trust of popular brands and their advertising investments, which make up the majority of X’s income. Additionally, X has taken legal action against Media Matters.

In the following month, Musk expressed his anger towards advertisers who stopped spending on X due to the presence of anti-semitic and hateful content. He accused them of engaging in “blackmail” and, using explicit language, instructed them to leave.

Source: wral.com