In a blow to CEO Elon Musk's already fraying credibility as a defender of free speech, the Turkish government claims that Twitter has agreed to a crackdown on voices it dislikes.
The announcement follows Turkey's temporary restriction on Twitter access following a devastating earthquake this week. President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has been infuriated by public criticism of his handling of earthquake relief efforts and by credible suggestions that earthquake mitigation and emergency funds were stolen or wasted by his Justice and Development Party. Ever sensitive to criticism, Erdogan's government has, in recent years, imprisoned thousands of political opponents and hundreds of journalists for offenses as mild as making fun of him. But with the elections coming in May or June, Erdogan is now particularly keen to avoid negative coverage.
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It's alarming, then, that Musk appears to have bowed to Erdogan's demand for greater restrictions on Twitter users who are criticizing his government.
Erdogan's communications chief observed on Thursday that Turkey and Twitter had held a productive meeting. He added: "We are grateful for Twitter’s cooperation and pledge to support [Turkey's] efforts to combat disinformation. Disinformation is humanity’s common enemy and a grave threat to democracy, social peace, and national security. We look forward to working more closely with Twitter over the next few days and weeks."
Considering that Erdogan likes to receive proof of deference before offering political reciprocity, a dynamic best evinced by his blackmail of Sweden over its request to join NATO, it seems unlikely that Erdogan's government would have praised Twitter unless Twitter had first made concrete commitments.
The problem is that, as with elements of the American Left, Erdogan uses the term "disinformation" as a catch-all for legitimate political criticism. It would be unconscionable if Twitter were to serve this authoritarian agenda. Unfortunately, Musk's leadership of Twitter has shown a far more tentative regard for free speech than he would otherwise claim. Yes, Musk has unveiled prior collusion between the U.S. government and Twitter to censor reporting on matters such as Hunter Biden's laptop. But Musk has also been willing to put his own interests and those of other powerful figures (Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, for example) before Twitter's nominal interest in supporting free speech and public scrutiny.
Turkish citizens should have the right to criticize their government on Twitter about all matters of public import, let alone amid a catastrophe such as this earthquake. If Musk is bowing to Erdogan, he has made a big mistake.