DAVOS (Reuters) – Social media owners should be held responsible for “poisoning society” and eroding democracy with their algorithms, Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez told the World Economic Forum in Davos on Wednesday.
Sanchez also said he would propose an EU council meeting to end anonymity on social media and make algorithms more transparent.
“The owner of a small restaurant is responsible if their food poisons customers; social media tycoons should be held responsible if their algorithms poison our society. Let’s take back control. Let’s make social media great again,” he said, paraphrasing the campaign slogan of U.S. President Donald Trump.
Sanchez said that while social media had brought lots of gains such as connecting people far away, they also came with huge downsides, “hidden in the bowels of the algorithms like invaders concealed in the belly of the Trojan horse.”
Spanish Labour Minister and Deputy Prime Minister Yolanda Diaz said on Tuesday she would withdraw from Elon Musk’s social media platform X due in part to the billionaire’s behaviour during events linked to President Trump’s inauguration.
(Reporting by Inti Landauro. Writing by Emma Pinedo in Madrid, editing by Andrei Khalip)
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