Australian Judge Refuses Cyber Safety Regulator’s Request To Extend X’s Video Ban

An Australian court has rejected a bid by the country’s cyber safety regulator to extend a temporary order requiring Elon Musk-owned X to block videos depicting the stabbing of an Assyrian church bishop. 

Federal Court judge Geoffrey Kennett made the decision, stating that the application to extend the injunction granted last month had been refused. Kennett mentioned that the reasons for the judgment would be released later during a brief hearing.

This legal tussle has ignited heated exchanges between Musk and senior Australian officials, including Prime Minister Anthony Albanese. Albanese referred to Musk as "an arrogant billionaire" for his objections to taking down the video. Musk has publicly criticised the regulatory order, labeling it as censorship and posting memes in response.

While X, formerly Twitter, has refused to remove the content globally, other platforms such as Meta swiftly complied with requests to take down the footage. The Federal Court, Australia's second-highest court, previously upheld an order by the eSafety Commissioner to remove 65 posts containing the violent footage, which showed the bishop being stabbed during a sermon in Sydney on 15 April. A 16-year-old has been charged with a terrorism offense in connection with the attack.

Despite Australian users being blocked from viewing the posts, X's refusal to remove them globally is based on the argument that one country's regulations should not dictate internet content. However, the effectiveness of geo-blocking Australian users has been called into question, as a significant portion of the population uses virtual private networks to conceal their locations.

In response to these challenges, Albanese's centre-left government has announced plans to hold a parliamentary inquiry into the negative impacts of social media. The government asserts that social media platforms wield significant control over what Australians see online, with limited oversight. This inquiry reflects broader concerns about the influence of tech giants on public discourse and the need for regulatory scrutiny in the digital sphere.