The Federal Communications Commission swept away any notion that it intends to interfere with Elon Musk’s acquisition of Twitter.
FCC Commissioner Nathan Simington released a letter on Monday declaring that, despite the argument made by certain progressive organizations such as the Open Markets Institute, the regulatory agency does not have the jurisdiction to stop the billionaire’s acquisition of the social platform.
“It would be inappropriate and contrary to the public interest to block [Twitter’s acquisition],” Simington wrote. “Mr. Musk’s acquisition does not raise any concerns about vertical or horizontal concentration in the social media market. There is no reason to think it would otherwise limit competition or harm consumer welfare.”
THE DEBRIEF: ELON MUSK AND THE FUTURE OF FREE SPEECH ONLINE
Simington, who was appointed during the Trump administration, claimed that antitrust regulators should “welcome” the purchase. He argued that “consumer choice and freedom have suffered due to the restrictive, and often politically motivated, content moderation practices” of most social media platforms and that Musk’s acquisition would “enhance competition and better serve those Americans, the majority, who value free speech.”
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The commissioner also said that Musk’s sole ownership is not something for the FCC to be concerned about.
Simington is not the only commissioner to praise Musk’s acquisition of Twitter. Brendan Carr told Fox News’s Maria Bartiromo on April 26 that he’s “hopeful that Elon Musk is going to bend Twitter’s content moderation towards a greater embrace of free speech.”
