Onlookers have long suspected that Elon Musk’s X (formerly Twitter) has a right-wing bias embedded in its digital DNA, and, in January of this year, cybercrime authorities in France took it upon themselves to uncover whether this was true or not. The investigation has sought to determine whether the site is guilty of algorithmically manipulating the visibility of content on its website. NBC reports that, earlier this month, the probe was transferred to a “key unit of France’s national police.” Now, X has attacked the probe, proclaiming publicly that it is refusing to cooperate with authorities.
In a post made to the site on Monday, X’s Global Government Affairs page lambasted the investigation as a political witch hunt. “French authorities have launched a politically-motivated criminal investigation into X over the alleged manipulation of its algorithm and alleged ‘fraudulent data extraction.’ X categorically denies these allegations,” the page says.
The cybercrime unit of the Paris prosecutor’s office initially took on the X case in January after two people allegedly provided information to the government about the site, the Associated Press previously reported. In July, the Paris prosecutor’s office announced it had taken on the investigation over allegations of data tampering and fraud, charges that are punishable by up to 10 years in jail, AP notes. According to Le Monde, the initial basis of the case was a report filed in January by MP Eric Bothorel, which claimed that there had been “recent algorithm changes on the (Twitter) X platform, as well as apparent interference in its management since its acquisition by Elon Musk.” Bothorel’s report was apparently based on a unique legal theory, Le Monde writes:
At the heart of this investigation lies a legal innovation. Bothorel’s alert is largely based on an analysis published on February 6 by legal expert and law professor Michel Séjean. In the specialized journal Dalloz, Séjean argued that under French law, distorting the operation of a recommendation algorithm on a social media platform can be punishable by the same penalties as computer hacking. According to this analysis, manipulating a platform’s algorithm without the users’ knowledge would be punishable under Article 323-2 of the French penal code, which punishes “hindering or distorting the operation of an automated data processing system.” Until now, this article has been used exclusively to punish data theft and other forms of computer piracy.
At any rate, X clearly isn’t having it. In its statement Monday, the platform said that Bothorel had “accused X of manipulating its algorithm for ‘foreign interference’ purposes, an allegation which is completely false.”
The site also said that it would not be cooperating with the French inquiry. “French authorities have requested access to X’s recommendation algorithm and real-time data about all user posts on the platform in order for several ‘experts’ to analyze the data and purportedly ‘uncover the truth’ about the operation of the X platform,” the site said. “X has not acceded to the French authorities’ demands, as we have a legal right to do,” it continued. “This is not a decision that X takes lightly. However, in this case, the facts speak for themselves. X is committed to defending its fundamental rights, protecting user data and resisting political censorship.”
A study last year claimed to have found evidence that the site was, indeed, algorithmically biased in favor of right-wing content. Researchers with the Queensland University of Technology in Australia claimed to have found evidence of a “structural engagement shift” on the platform that seemed to favor certain right-leaning accounts. The shift took place around mid-July 2024, right after the assassination attempt on Donald Trump’s life.
