When the EU doesn’t like the outcome of an election or a government in a member country, it alarmingly tends to look for explanations in almost every place, except the one that makes sense – the free, democratic will of the voters.
It’s Romania’s turn. Namely, ahead of the second round of presidential elections in that country, the European Parliament (EP) appears to be going the roundabout way in an attempt to delegitimize the first-round victory of independent candidate Calin Georgescu.
And the roundabout way is what looks like a frontal rhetorical assault on TikTok, which some EP members (MEPs) are accusing of failing to live up to the Digital Services Act (DSA) – EU’s censorship law. Specifically now, where it now concerns the Romanian vote and spread of “disinformation” on an alleged scale capable of influencing the result.
A hearing was organized on Tuesday to put pressure on the social platform’s executives, with corporate media describing the MEP’s behavior as “hostile” and “furious” – while Georgescu is casually referred to as an “ultranationalist.”
The Internal Market Committee hearing came after TikTok was blamed by the European Commission for running algorithms that supposedly “disproportionally” promoted content favorable to Georgescu.
TikTok’s representatives told the panel that they are in fact working hard to censor, aka, moderate content in Romania in particular, a market which is said to have the largest number of moderators.
And, in the run-up to elections, a number of “influence campaigns” had been removed from the platform, they told the MEPs. But that’s not what the MEPs wanted to hear.
Those from Georgescu’s opponents at home, the ruling Social Democrats, were particularly vocal in their outrage, accusing TikTok of not respecting DSA-mandated censorship (“moderation”), and providing the committee with “no answers” while showing “utter contempt.”
Only a politician knows how it’s possible to interpret an attempt by TikTok to prove and document its eagerness to “moderate” to the current authorities’ satisfaction as, “utter contempt” – but, unsurprisingly, Greens from a number of countries used similar rhetoric.
Meanwhile, “work” is being done in Romania itself to derail Georgescu’s presidential bid, including accusations of alleged “outside interference.”
