Monthly Round-Up MAY 2023 Twitter Faces German Regulatory Backlash for Failing to Tackle Hate Speech Disney Sues Florida Governor Ron DeSantis Elon Musk’s Twitter may face a number of multimillion-dollar penalties from German regulators for its failure to address hate speech spread through the platform. In a new legal action, Disney has accused Florida Governor Ron DeSantis of organising a campaign of "government retaliation" against its business. These fines may even add up to several billion should the German government act on the scores of reported instances of content moderation inaction that have already been brought to its attention. German courts have confirmed that the law has been Disney has asked the Florida federal court to undo the moves, claiming that DeSantis’. "Disney regrets it has come to this," a company spokesperson said in the lawsuit. "But having exhausted efforts to seek a resolution, the company breached in multiple cases. Currently, more than 600 illegal hate speech cases have been reported to Germany’s Federal Justice Office (BfJ), carrying a cumulative maximum penalty of up to €30 billion. Concerns over Musk’s impact on Twitter’s content moderation in the region has also drawn criticism from the European Commission, which will be taking up a major oversight role of larger platforms’ response to hateful content under the Digital Services Act later this year. is left with no choice but to file this lawsuit to protect its cast members, guests, and local development partners from a relentless campaign to weaponise government power against Disney in retaliation for expressing a political viewpoint unpopular with certain state officials." Early this month, Germany’s federal government announced that it was instigating a procedure over suspected systemic failures under the country’s hate speech takedowns law – NetzDG, as it is colloquially known – which allows for fines of up to €50 million per case. The lawsuit escalates the ongoing conflict between the Republican governor and Disney – which employs more than 75,000 people in Florida – initially stemming from the company’s criticism of a state law banning discussion of sexual orientation or gender identity in primary schools (colloquially referred to as the “Don’t Say Gay” bill). DeSantis, who is viewed in many political corners as a prospective Republican candidate for president, has since taken combative measures against the company, vowing that the state would not “bend a knee to woke executives in California”. Most recently, state officials voided a development deal involving Disney’s Florida theme park. 8 LAWYER MONTHLY MAY 2023
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