London, 13 August 2024 (TDI): Elon Musk should face “personal sanctions” and even the risk of an “arrest warrant” if he is found to have encouraged public disorder on his social media platform X, a former Twitter executive said.
Bruce Daisley, who previously served as Twitter’s vice president for Europe, the Middle East, and Africa, said on Monday that it was unacceptable for Musk to sow discord without facing personal consequences.
Daisley’s remarks come in the aftermath of week-long far-right riots across England and Northern Ireland, during which mosques and asylum hotels were attacked.
The unrest was stirred up and inflamed by social media posts, including one from Elon Musk stating that “civil war is inevitable” in the United Kingdom — a remark that Justice Minister Heidi Alexander condemned as “unacceptable.”
Musk also criticized Prime Minister Keir Starmer, labeling him “two-tier Keir” and a “hypocrite” for his handling of policing, and shared, then deleted, a false post claiming Starmer planned to set up detainment centers in the Falkland Islands.
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Daisley said that Starmer should strengthen online safety laws and reconsider whether the media regulator, Ofcom, is adequately equipped to manage the rapid actions of people like Musk.
He added that the threat of personal sanctions could be more effective than corporate fines, especially in influencing the lifestyles of tech billionaires.
Daisley, who served at Twitter from 2012-2020, described Elon Musk as someone who has taken on the aura of a teenager on the bus with no earphones, creating noise.
