The Brazilian Supreme Court has upheld the ban on social network X, effective since Saturday, August 31. This decision follows the conflict between Elon Musk, CEO of the network, and Brazilian Supreme Court judge Alexandre de Moraes.
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Elon Musk is accused of overstepping the mark in the eyes of the Brazilian justice system. After closing X’s offices in Brazil in mid-August 2024, the company had no legal representative in the country and no one to respond to the accusations of Judge Alexandre de Moraes. X also owes 18 million reais, or 3 million euros, and there is no one to pay the bill.
However, Elon Musk had already defied the Brazilian justice system in April 2024, when he reactivated far-right profiles spreading false information. These profiles had been suspended as part of an investigation into former President Jair Bolsonaro’s attempted coup in 2023. The standoff intensified when the Supreme Court judge blocked the accounts of Starlink, the satellite internet service provider that Elon Musk owns.
A month before the municipal elections, this decision is above all political, since in this duel, there is Judge Alexandre de Moares, figure of the fight against disinformation in Brazil and become bête noire of Jair Bolsonaro’s supporters. On the other, there is the richest man in the world, boss of X, Tesla, Space X and close to Donald Trump.
Elon Musk is waving the banner of freedom of expression against the censorship of a judge he readily describes as a dictator. On his X profile, he had great fun publishing montages of the judge as Voldemort in Harry Potter. Alexandre de Moraes, for his part, accuses the billionaire of criminal exploitation of the platform. Since September 2, 2024, the decision is no longer that of a single man since the Supreme Court unanimously confirmed the suspension of X in a virtual session.
On the user side, some understand the reasons for the blockage and others, who already hated Judge Alexandre de Moraes, side with Elon Musk. With 22 million users in Brazil, the country is the platform’s sixth largest market. Some feel held hostage in this conflict, especially since those who try to circumvent the ban, using network simulators, such as VPNs, are exposed to a fine of nearly 8,000 euros. Finally, since the ban, Internet users have turned to other social networks, such as Threads by Meta, or Bluesky, which has reportedly gained 1 million subscribers.