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

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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