‘Worrying’ that X is refusing to appear before committee – TD

By Gráinne Ní Aodha, Press Association

It is “worrying” that social media giant X is refusing to send representatives to answer questions about online safety, the chair of the Committee on Arts, Media and Sport has said.

Alan Kelly said it was particularly disappointing after Taoiseach Micheál Martin also asked the tech multinational to appear before the committee.

Representatives from Meta, Google, and TikTok will appear before the Committee on Arts, Media and Sport on Wednesday afternoon.

There has been social and political criticism of Elon Musk’s social media site X, formerly known as Twitter, over its AI chatbot allowing deepfake sexualised images of people, including minors.

The EU Commission is investigating X over reports that child sexual abuse material and non-consensual intimate images of adults were generated through the Grok tool and disseminated on the platform.

The company had given written assurances to Irish regulators and the Minister of State with responsibility for AI, Niamh Smyth, that such functionality had been switched off “globally” on January 20th.

But Ms Smyth said it was “deeply concerning” that the functionality could be available in other jurisdictions.

On Tuesday, chairman of the Joint Committee on Arts, Media, Communications, Culture and Sport Alan Kelly said despite X’s non-attendance there would be a focus on the protection of young people online.

He added: “While we welcome the attendance of Google, Meta, and TikTok, the committee notes that X, formerly known as Twitter, declined the invitation to appear.

“It is extremely disappointing and worrying that X have refused to attend, especially after a request was additionally made by the Taoiseach for them to do so.”

He said: “This meeting will examine how major online platforms approach regulation, online safety and the protection of children and young people.

“We plan to discuss issues including content moderation, the use of technology and human oversight to address harmful and illegal content, age-appropriate design, age assurance, and the role of digital literacy and user empowerment.

“We will also how platforms such as TikTok are implementing their obligations under the EU Digital Services Act, particularly considering the high levels of engagement by children and young people in Ireland with online platforms and the importance of ensuring that their safety, privacy and wellbeing are protected.

“The committee looks forward to engaging with representatives on these matters as part of its ongoing scrutiny of the operation and impact of online platforms and will continue its engagement with relevant stakeholders in examining the regulation of online platforms.”