X announces it will close in Brazil due to “censorship”

MEXICO CITY (AP) — Social media platform X said on Monday it will shut down its operations in Brazil, saying Brazilian Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes threatened to arrest its legal representative in Brazil if it did not comply with certain orders.

X is pulling back all of its remaining staff in Brazil “effective immediately,” though the company said the service will remain available to users in Brazil. The company did not clarify how it could claim to be suspending operations while continuing to offer service to Brazilians.

Earlier this year, the company clashed with de Moraes over freedom of expression, far-right accounts and false information spread through X.

The company said its latest orders amounted to censorship, and shared a copy of the document on X.

As of yesterday, the Supreme Court’s press office had not responded to AP’s emails seeking comment or confirmation of the document’s veracity.

In the United States, freedom of expression is a more permissive constitutional right than in many countries, such as Brazil, where de Moraes ordered an investigation in April into X CEO Elon Musk for spreading defamatory fake news and another probe into possible obstruction, incitement and criminal organization.

Related