The candidate for his re-election is firmly committed to American platforms, which he criticizes for the addictive and harmful aspect to our societies. He also takes a stand against online anonymity.
The next meeting between Emmanuel Macron and Mark Zuckerberg could be colder than the May 2018 meeting. by Point, the presidential candidate gave his views on the main digital platforms and their effects on society, taking a particularly critical look at the latter. During the interview assigned to the weekly, Emmanuel Macron put forward the hypothesis of a dismantling, in particular to end the power of Facebook.
Facebook indirectly targeted
“First there is the topic of social networks. Many are American today. We should not hesitate to consider and regulate the dismantling of those who find themselves in a monopoly situation,” warns Emmanuel Macron.
If not explicitly mentioned, Facebook is currently the only US group (now called Meta) accused of monopoly and whose activity is based on the exploitation of social networks. The latter thus has Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp and Messenger messaging as well as the Oculus virtual reality platform.
The hypothesis of such a dismantling of Meta is increasingly being put forward by elected officials in Europe and the United States, where the company has been the target of numerous complaints for abuse of a dominant position. Specifically, the company founded by Mark Zuckerberg is accused of: Instagram and WhatsApp have bought to avoid any competition.
During the same interview, Emmanuel Macron draws a rather negative judgment about the role of Facebook, Instagram or Twitter.
“On social networks, we can destroy reputations, spread false news, incite people to commit suicide,” the candidate laments. “When you read what, say, Mark Zuckerberg thinks, or even Elon Musk, who became a shareholder of Twitter and is a libertarian, you realize that they too have a vision of the world. It’s not always democratic,” he adds.
“There should be no anonymity”
Even more surprising, Emmanuel Macron recalls a track that was still criticized by his Secretary of State for Digital Cédric O: ban online anonymity.
“In a democratic society there should be no anonymity. You can’t walk down the street with a hood. On the internet, because they are hidden behind a nickname, people allow themselves to express the worst abjections,” analyzes Emmanuel Macron.
The candidate, who will face Marine Le Pen in the second round on April 24, also goes back on his campaign promises around France’s digital sovereignty, in light of the omnipotence of the American and Chinese giants in the field.
“Ensuring our sovereignty in platforms, mobile applications, metaverses, the cybersecurity cloud will take us ten years,” Emmanuel Macron anticipates.
