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Ripple CTO David Schwartz supports Elon Musk following accusations that the Tesla boss is profiting from the spread of pro-Hamas propaganda on X.
David Schwartz, the CTO at Ripple Labs, has commented on the recent allegations leveled by U.S. lawmakers against X owner Elon Musk.
U.S. Lawmakers Accuse Musk of Profiting From Pro-Hamas Propaganda
According to reports, a group of 27 U.S. lawmakers accused Musk of profiting from the spread of glorified violence against Israelis on the X platform.
The lawmakers, led by Reps Jamie Raskin and Dan Goldman, sent a letter to Musk and X CEO Linda Yaccarino accusing the social media platform of not following its policies concerning “violent and hateful entities.”
Notably, this concept prohibits spreading terrorist activities and propaganda on social media while seeking cooperation from platforms to remove such violations.
Citing reports from non-profit research groups, the lawmakers outlined how certain X premium accounts shared “uncensored videos showing the desecration of corpses” in the darkest corners of the social media platform.
The lawmakers noted that despite the spread of this illicit content, the team behind X continues to allow the premium accounts circulating the content to remain live on the platform. Consequently, they accused the social media platform of profiting from the anti-Israeli propaganda being disseminated on X.
U.S. Rep Slams Musk
Adding an intriguing layer to the matter, U.S. lawmaker Adam Schiff recently took to X to directly accuse Musk of amplifying antisemitic content and profiting from misinformation.
Schiff warned that the spread of pro-Hamas propaganda on the X platform needs to stop, adding that he is among the lawmakers demanding accountability from the social media platform.
Ripple CTO Reacts
Reacting to the development, Schwartz noted that remarks from Rep. Schiff should violate the First Amendment.
“This statement alone should violate the First Amendment because it chills protected speech by making people fear the coercive machinations of the government [that] will be used against them if they continue to engage in protected speech,” he said.
However, Schwartz pointed out that under the current law, Rep. Schiff’s comment did not violate the law.
This statement alone should violate the First Amendment because it chills protected speech by making people fear the coercive machinations of government will be used against them if they continue to engage in protected speech. But, unfortunately, under current law it does not. https://t.co/HuDC40TqCH
— David "JoelKatz" Schwartz (@JoelKatz) November 22, 2023
It bears mentioning that the First Amendment protects people’s speech from government censorship. The rule applies to government at all levels, including federal, state, and local actors.
Ripple CTO Supports Musk Against EU
Meanwhile, this is not the first time Schwartz has thrown his weight behind Musk against the government regarding the spread of Israel-Hamas propaganda on X.
Reacting to reports about the European Commission investigating the circulation of Hamas propaganda on X, Schwartz noted that the United States is fortunate to have the First Amendment prevent such occurrence.