Journalist banned from X says Musk, ‘free speech advocate’, is a hypocrite

A respected investigative journalist has called Elon Musk a free speech hypocrite after X (formerly Twitter) blocked his account for criticizing Telegram’s controversial content policies.

Bulgarian journalist Christo Grozev claimed he was blocked for complaining about Telegram facilitating child pornography. He said the ban was hypocritical of Musk after he called the arrest of Telegram founder Pavel Durov an attack on freedom of speech.

“Elon Musk lashes out at France for wanting Telegram to LITERALLY do the same thing he did,” Grozev posted.

Grozev argues that it is not controversial to deny freedom of speech to people with Telegram channels that contain the words “underage girls.” However, Musk, who calls himself a free speech advocate, has called for the Russian entrepreneur’s release, saying moderation is “a propaganda word for censorship.”

According to X, Grozev’s message has violated its policy on child sexual exploitation and he was forced to remove it to unlock his account. He was also told that he could appeal the restriction.