{"id":18192,"date":"2026-02-05T12:08:25","date_gmt":"2026-02-05T11:08:25","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/alexandrageese.eu\/?p=18192"},"modified":"2026-11-09T12:59:38","modified_gmt":"2026-11-09T11:59:38","slug":"the-tech-oligarchs-are-scared-of-spains-courage","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/alexandrageese.eu\/en\/the-tech-oligarchs-are-scared-of-spains-courage\/","title":{"rendered":"The tech oligarchs are scared of Spain\u2019s courage"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><b>+++ Share this message <\/b><a href=\"https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/posts\/alexandra-geese-b9059229_courage-this-is-what-i-have-been-calling-activity-7424840008844464130-qhSg?utm_source=share&amp;utm_medium=member_desktop&amp;rcm=ACoAABJrCJgBS4qvlzY0ZFqSa9bATq6PhwMo-UE\"><b>on LinkedIn <\/b><\/a><b>+++<\/b><\/p>\n<p>Dear readers!<\/p>\n<p>Finally, a European leader stands up to the tech oligarchs. On Tuesday, the Spanish Prime Minister S\u00e1nchez announced a series of groundbreaking measures to tackle online hate and polarization, among them:<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li aria-level=\"1\">A social media ban for under-16s<\/li>\n<li aria-level=\"1\">Personal accountability for platform executives<\/li>\n<li aria-level=\"1\">Criminalising algorithmic manipulation and the amplification of illegal content<\/li>\n<li aria-level=\"1\">The introduction of a \u201chate and polarization footprint\u201d system to track how platforms fuel division.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><b>It\u2018s scaring the tech oligarchs<\/b><\/p>\n<p>What really scares the oligarchs is that S\u00e1nchez dares to say one thing very loudly: Social media has become a failed state, a place where laws are ignored and where disinformation is worth more than truth.<\/p>\n<p>The online platforms as they are set up now are a threat to democracy, to the well-being of our children, women and the society as a whole. This is something the European Parliament has pointed out for a long time, but the EU Commission and the EU member states have been dragging their feet ever since. S\u00e1nchez\u2019 courage could be the start of a united European response. A united Europe that protects its values is what scares the tech oligarchs most.<\/p>\n<p>Elon Musk already used his platform to insult Prime Minister S\u00e1nchez, calling him \u201ddirty, a tyrant and a traitor\u201c (see screenshot above). S\u00e1nchez certainly needs to brace for a massive disinformation and defamation campaign.<\/p>\n<p>His announcement is a brave step forward and a stark contrast to the total lack of action of the European Commission President.<\/p>\n<p><b>S\u00e1nchez courageous move poses a challenge for the European Commission.\u00a0<\/b><\/p>\n<p>All of S\u00e1nchez\u2018s proposed measures (except the criminal responsibility) could have been addressed using the Digital Services Act, which provides an appropriate legal basis. However, the European Commission has deliberately chosen not to use the DSA in a way that means any meaningful enforcement actions. Instead Commissioner Virkunnen and Commission President von der Leyen\u00a0 slow down investigations and refuse to touch politically sensitive issues like polarization and electoral manipulation. Even in the case of serious crimes such as like child-sexual-abuse-material (CSAM) generated by Grok on X it took the Commission weeks to react.<\/p>\n<p>Under the continuous threats of the US government, it has turned the Digital Services Act into a blanket suffocating any attempt to take the internet out of the hands of authoritarian oligarchs.<\/p>\n<p><b>It\u2018s a grim irony. The DSA was established to prevent fragmentation of the European Digital Single Market. Now the lack of enforcement is producing exactly the fragmentation and legal uncertainty that it was conceived to prevent.\u00a0<\/b><\/p>\n<p>Now, member states governments and the European Commission must decide: Will they stand by S\u00e1nchez and their own citizens or will they use the DSA against him? On the surface, the issues addressed by S\u00e1nchez are covered by European law, which overrides Spanish national legislation. While the legal details will be analysed, what matters most is political will. It\u2018s time for courage. It\u2018s time for Europe to stand together. Behind S\u00e1nchez, I will stand.<\/p>\n<p><b>+++ Please share this message <\/b><a href=\"https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/posts\/alexandra-geese-b9059229_courage-this-is-what-i-have-been-calling-activity-7424840008844464130-qhSg?utm_source=share&amp;utm_medium=member_desktop&amp;rcm=ACoAABJrCJgBS4qvlzY0ZFqSa9bATq6PhwMo-UE\"><b>on LinkedIn<\/b><\/a><b>, so we can push for a united European stand +++<\/b><\/p>\n<p>Thank you for your support!<\/p>\n<p>All the best,<\/p>\n<p>Alexandra<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>+++ Share this message on LinkedIn +++ Dear readers! Finally, a European leader stands up to the tech oligarchs. On Tuesday, the Spanish Prime Minister S\u00e1nchez announced a series of groundbreaking measures to tackle online hate and polarization, among them: &nbsp; A social media ban for under-16s Personal accountability for platform executives Criminalising algorithmic manipulation [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":18189,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[144,85,142,105],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-18192","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-democracy","category-digital","category-digital-services-act-en","category-europe"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v28.8 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>The tech oligarchs are scared of Spain\u2019s courage - Alexandrageese.eu<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/alexandrageese.eu\/en\/the-tech-oligarchs-are-scared-of-spains-courage\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"The tech oligarchs are scared of Spain\u2019s courage - Alexandrageese.eu\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"+++ Share this message on LinkedIn +++ Dear readers! Finally, a European leader stands up to the tech oligarchs. 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