Breton's Elon Musk regulatory troll earns one of the most epic ratios of all time

Yesterday, hours before American entrepreneur Elon Musk sat down with former President Donald Trump on a live "X space," EU Commissioner Thierry Breton fired off a snarky letter to "remind" Musk of his obligations to the European Union's Digital Services Act.

As of publication, this X post has garnered over 67 million views, 15,000 retweets, and over 72,000 direct replies, resulting in one of the most epic ratios in Twitter/X history.

As has been covered here on EU Tech Loop, this European regulation places various moderation requirements on platforms deemed "Very Large Online Platforms," ensuring that "proportionate and effective mitigation measures are put in place regarding the amplification of harmful content in connection with relevant events."

The letter posted to X (as we have yet to find an official PDF), insinuates that because the conversation with the former US president and current presidential contender will make its way to European citizens' ears, Musk should take apply "due diligence" to ensure that harmful content is not "unaddressed" during broadcast:

The stunning bravado of the letter sent to the American entrepreneur, in the context of an upcoming conversation with a candidate in a democratic election far away from European shores, is truly a sight to behold. Not just because of its brazen attempt to rip headlines away from the interview, but also because of its intended impact or influence on the American democratic process.

X CEO Linda Yaccarino wrote in a post that Breton's letter is an "unprecedented attempt to stretch a law intended to apply in Europe to political activities in the US. It also patronizes European citizens, suggesting they are incapable of listening to a conversation and drawing their own conclusions."

While this may be easily interpreted by continental commentators as a regulatory troll, meant to flex the muscles of European digital regulation at home and abroad, it also reveals what Yale economist Fiona Scott Morton warned about when it comes to Breton's comments on social media platforms.

Speaking with Politico EU in late July, Scott Morton – an American economist who was briefly the EU's chief competition economist before a French outcry made her step down days into her tenure – forewarned that hastily written communications would eventually affect the legitimacy of the bloc's competition efforts more broadly.

"I think that firing off tweets, if you’re competition commissioner, without careful thought about what’s in them and how that will be perceived by courts and other constituencies could really set back the whole enterprise,” she told Politico.

The aim of Breton's Monday night letter was to remind Musk of his company's obligations to the DSA, but it is framed in the context of both the Trump interview and "recent events in the United Kingdom," referring to social media-inspired race riots that have embroiled the British Isles in a worrying episode of street violence and ensuing police crackdowns on online speech.

Neither the United States nor the UK are parties to the DSA, despite Breton's attempt to shoehorn EU regulatory power into the conversation, but platforms like X are mandated to follow these rules when it applies to European citizens.

Will Breton's letter reframe the conversation on the utility or applicability of European digital regulation on globalized internet platforms? Or will be lead to blowback for the EU's efforts to police social media websites in line with its rules?

What do you think? Let us know down in the comments.