Free Republic
Browse · Search
News/Activism
Topics · Post Article

Skip to comments.

Jonathan Turley Slams ‘Global Censors,’ Says Americans Should Be Afraid After Telegram Founder’s Arrest
Daily Caller News Foundation ^ | August 26, 2024 | Julianna Frieman

Posted on 08/26/2024 7:48:53 AM PDT by george76

George Washington University (GWU) law professor Jonathan Turley slammed “global censors” Monday morning on “Fox and Friends” following the arrest of Telegram founder Pavel Durov.

French authorities arrested Durov, the billionaire creator and messaging app CEO

...

concerns many in the European Union have for potential chilling of free speech.

...

People need to realize what’s really going on here. We haven’t seen anything akin to a charging sheet, but it appears that he’s being arrested under these European laws that are designed to force social media companies to engage in censorship,” Turley said.

...

the “most infamous” European law against free speech is the Digital Services Act (DSA), which he called “one of the greatest threats to free speech that we have today around the world.”

Turley related the issue to when European Commissioner for International Markets Thierry Brenton warned Elon Musk that his social media platform X must comply with the EU’s digital free speech and disinformation laws in a letter ahead of Musk’s interview with former President Donald Trump on Aug. 12.

...

like arresting AT&T’s CEO because the mob used a telephone to do its business.”

...

the question for American citizens is whether we’re going to allow these global censors to basically control speech from Europe. Free speech is in a free fall in Europe,” he continued. “It was no accident when Elon Musk bought Twitter, figures like Hillary Clinton almost immediately went to Europe and called on them to use the DSA. Consider that. To use the DSA to censor American citizens. That’s a former presidential candidate calling for censorship through these officials.”

2016 Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton promoted the DSA in April 2022, the same month Musk initiated his acquisition of Twitter.

...

there’s a very dangerous slippery slope that comes from these laws, and American citizens should not be distracted from the implications of things like the DSA,” Turley said. “This is an important fight, and Americans’ rights are at stake here. Don’t be distracted. This Russian billionaire might not be sympathetic to you, but they’re using something that should scare you.”


TOPICS: European Union; France; News/Current Events; Politics/Elections
KEYWORDS: censors; censorship; digitalservicesact; dsa; durov; free; freedom; freespeech; globalcensors; jonathanturley; pavel; paveldurov; speech; telegram; turley
Navigation: use the links below to view more comments.
first previous 1-2021-30 last
To: PGR88
Britain, France and the USA deep-state and Democrats

And, the Republican establishment.

Everything they accuse Russia of is true of them.

Britain, France and us if Harris gets into office are morphing into the old Soviet Union, all while Zeepers hearing cheer those responsible for it all on.

21 posted on 08/26/2024 9:33:54 AM PDT by Kazan
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 2 | View Replies]

To: george76

France has taken up Beria’s claim, “Show me the man and I’ll show you the crime”! Beria was Stalin’s enforcer.


22 posted on 08/26/2024 10:37:06 AM PDT by Ruy Dias de Bivar ( Government is not reason, it is not eloquence-it is force!--G. Washington)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: george76
We haven’t seen anything akin to a charging sheet, but it appears that he’s being arrested under these European laws that are designed to force social media companies to engage in censorship,” Turley said.

Europe has fallen - and without a single shot being fired. Thank God Turley was born in our time...

23 posted on 08/26/2024 12:22:32 PM PDT by GOPJ (Kamala kisses up and punches down - cgbg * Walz put tampon dispensers in boys bathrooms...)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Godzilla
People need to realize what’s really going on here. We haven’t seen anything akin to a charging sheet, but it appears that he’s being arrested under these European laws that are designed to force social media companies to engage in censorship,” Turley said. ... the “most infamous” European law against free speech is the Digital Services Act (DSA), which he called “one of the greatest threats to free speech that we have today around the world.”

Ping

24 posted on 08/26/2024 12:27:11 PM PDT by GOPJ (Kamala kisses up and punches down - cgbg * Walz put tampon dispensers in boys bathrooms...)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 3 | View Replies]

To: OldHarbor

“Social Media , at least here in the US was a DARPA project to gather information.

Many folks would resist providing information to the government , yet will gladly divulge information to Face Book, Instagram, X, etc.

The folks at FB, Twitter, etc got extremely wealthy , the government gets their information and can push forth ideas, propaganda, etc via those same platforms.”

Thank you for sharing your insight.
Many citizens in U.S. refuse to engage in Facebook, Twitter etc


25 posted on 08/26/2024 4:16:49 PM PDT by UMCRevMom@aol.com (Pray for God 's intervention to stop Putin's invasion of Ukraine 🇺🇸)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 14 | View Replies]

To: mewzilla

“Not just social media. Search engines, too.”

Appreciate your comment. You are absolutely correct.


26 posted on 08/26/2024 4:32:49 PM PDT by UMCRevMom@aol.com (Pray for God 's intervention to stop Putin's invasion of Ukraine 🇺🇸)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 12 | View Replies]

To: All

ARTICLE

What is Telegram and why was its CEO arrested in Paris?
By BARBARA ORTUTAY
Updated 5:42 PM EDT, August 26, 2024
https://apnews.com/article/telegram-pavel-durov-arrest-2c8015c102cce23c23d55c6ca82641c5

Pavel Durov, the founder and CEO of the popular messaging app Telegram, was arrested in Paris over the weekend over allegations that his platform is being used for illicit activity such as drug trafficking and the distribution of child sexual abuse images.

Durov, who was born in Russia, spent much of his childhood in Italy and is a citizen of France, Russia, the Caribbean island nation of St. Kitts and Nevis and the United Arab Emirates. He was taken into custody at Paris-Le Bourget Airport in France on Saturday after landing from Azerbaijan.

In a statement posted to its platform, Telegram said it abides by EU laws and its content moderation is “within industry standards and constantly improving.” Durov, the company added, “has nothing to hide and travels frequently in Europe.”

Here are some details on Telegram, the app at the center of Durov’s arrest.

WHAT IS TELEGRAM?

Telegram is an app that allows for one-on-one conversations, group chats and large “channels” that let people broadcast messages to subscribers. Unlike rivals such as Meta’s WhatsApp, Telegram’s group chats allow as many as 200,000 people, compared to a maximum of 1,024 for WhatsApp. Experts have raised concerns that misinformation spreads easily in group chats of this size.

Telegram offers encryption for their communications, but — contrary to a popular misconception — this feature is not on by default. Users have to switch on the option to encrypt their chats. It also doesn’t work with group chats. That contrasts with rival Signal and Facebook Messenger, where chats are encrypted end-to-end by default.

Telegram says it has more than 950 million active users. It is widely used in France as a messaging tool, including by some officials in the presidential palace and in the ministry behind the investigation into Durov. But French investigators have also found the app has been used by Islamic extremists and drug traffickers.

Telegram was launched in 2013 by Durov and his brother Nikolai. According to Telegram, Pavel Durov supports the app “financially and ideologically while Nikolai’s input is technological.”

Before Telegram, Durov founded VKontakte, Russia’s largest social network. The company came under pressure amid the Russian government’s crackdown after mass pro-democracy protests rocked Moscow at the end of 2011 and 2012. Durov said government authorities demanded that the VKontakte take down the online communities of Russian opposition activists. It later asked the platform to hand over the personal data of users who took part in the 2013 uprising in Ukraine, which eventually ousted a pro-Kremlin president.

But Durov sold his stake in VKontakte after pressure from Russian authorities in 2014. He also left the country. Today, Telegram is based in Dubai, which Durov called “the best place for a neutral platform like ours to be in if we want to make sure we can defend our users’ privacy and freedom of speech” in an April interview with conservative talk show host Tucker Carlson.

WHY WAS DUROV ARRESTED?

French media has reported that Durov was detained on an arrest warrant alleging his platform has been used for money laundering, drug trafficking and other offenses. As of Monday afternoon, he had not been charged, and few details were available on the investigation.

On Sunday night, a French investigative judge extended Durov’s detention order, French media reported on Monday. Under French law, Durov can remain in custody for questioning for up to four days. After that, judges must decide to either charge him or release him.

WHAT HAS BEEN THE RESPONSE?

In Russia, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov declined to comment on reports of Durov’s arrest in France.

“We still don’t know what exactly Durov is being accused of,” Peskov said Monday during his daily media conference call. “We haven’t heard any official statements on that matter.”

“Let’s wait until the charges are announced – if they are announced,” Peskov said.

Russian government officials have expressed outrage at Durov’s detention, with some calling it politically motivated and proof of the West’s double standard on freedom of speech. The outcry has raised eyebrows among Kremlin critics: in 2018 Russian authorities themselves tried to block Telegram but failed, withdrawing the ban in 2020.

Elsewhere, Elon Musk, the billionaire owner of X who has called himself a “ free speech absolutist,” has been speaking out in support of Durov and posted ”#freePavel” following the arrest.

In a statement posted on its platform after his arrest, Telegram said it abides by EU laws, and its moderation is “within industry standards and constantly improving.”

“It is absurd to claim that a platform or its owner are responsible for abuse of that platform,” Telegram’s post said. “Almost a billion users globally use Telegram as a means of communication and as a source of vital information. We’re awaiting a prompt resolution of this situation. Telegram is with you all.”

DOES TELEGRAM MODERATE CONTENT?

Western governments have often criticized Telegram for a lack of content moderation, which experts say opens up the messaging platform for potential use in money laundering, drug trafficking and the sharing of material linked to the sexual exploitation of minors.

Compared to other messaging platforms, Telegram is “less secure (and) more lax in terms of policy and detection of illegal content,” said David Thiel, a Stanford University researcher, who has investigated the use of online platforms for child exploitation, at its Internet Observatory.

In addition, Telegram “appears basically unresponsive to law enforcement,” Thiel said, adding that messaging service WhatsApp “submitted over 1.3 million CyberTipline reports in 2023 (and) Telegram submits none.”

In 2022, Germany issued fines of 5.125 million euros ($5 million) against the operators of Telegram for failing to comply with German law. The Federal Office of Justice said that Telegram FZ-LLC hasn’t established a lawful way for reporting illegal content or named an entity in Germany to receive official communication.

Both are required under German laws that regulate large online platforms.

Last year, Brazil temporarily suspended Telegram over its failure to surrender data on neo-Nazi activity related to a police inquiry into school shootings in November.

Telegram said in response to the arrest that it abides by EU laws and its content moderation is “within industry standards and constantly improving.”


27 posted on 08/26/2024 4:34:48 PM PDT by UMCRevMom@aol.com (Pray for God 's intervention to stop Putin's invasion of Ukraine 🇺🇸)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 26 | View Replies]

To: george76

IF we had a President these pigs would get the crap knocked out of them .

Trump wouldn’t put up with this crap.


28 posted on 08/26/2024 4:35:13 PM PDT by Fledermaus (Clay Bevis and Cuck Butthead are panty wadded, pearl clutching cowards. Rush deserves better.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: UMCRevMom@aol.com
>>>>Durov, who was born in Russia, spent much of his childhood in Italy and is a citizen of France, Russia, the Caribbean island nation of St. Kitts and Nevis and the United Arab Emirates.<<<<

The ONLY reason you're posting in this tread is Durov was born in Russia and you, FR's Number One Purveyor of Ukrainian Propaganda, take every opportunity you can, to slam Russians.

russianseverywhereschiff.jpg

You're so transparent.

29 posted on 08/26/2024 7:15:09 PM PDT by bimboeruption (“Less propaganda would be appreciated.” JimRob 12-2-2023)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 27 | View Replies]

To: george76

(potential chilling of free speech)

Seems like we’re already there


30 posted on 08/28/2024 4:17:24 PM PDT by SaveFerris (Luke 17:28 ... as it was in the days of Lot; they did eat, they drank, they bought, they sold ......)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]


Navigation: use the links below to view more comments.
first previous 1-2021-30 last

Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.

Free Republic
Browse · Search
News/Activism
Topics · Post Article

FreeRepublic, LLC, PO BOX 9771, FRESNO, CA 93794
FreeRepublic.com is powered by software copyright 2000-2008 John Robinson