DOJ Blocks France's X Probe, Citing First Amendment

0:00It's April 18, I'm Cory with the story, and this is US News Today National News, powered by AI. The US Justice Department just shut down France's request for help in probing Elon Musk's platform, X. According to the Wall Street Journal, a letter from the DOJ's Office of International Affairs on Friday made it clear they're not assisting. This comes after Paris prosecutors raided X's French offices back in February and wanted Musk himself to answer questions. The French investigation has been running for a year now, zeroing in on claims that X's algorithms messed with content visibility and pulled user data. Without proper consent, it all stems from complaints by lawmakers and advocacy groups over how the platform handles posts. French officials see this as a way to enforce local rules on content and data, but the DOJ called it out hard. They said it's an attempt to drag America into a politically charged case that clashes with the First Amendment's free speech protections. An XAI official, tied to Musk's ventures, thanked the DOJ for stepping in and blocking interviews with their CEO and staff.

1:07They hope Paris drops what they call a baseless probe. Meanwhile, X keeps facing heat from regulators worldwide on moderation and compliance issues, but this US stand could set a tone for future clashes. Over global tech rules.