A New Zealand court has heard social media platform X, formerly known as Twitter, is not complying with an order to take down two posts which contain suppressed information.
1News has chosen not to identify the case but was in court when the matter was discussed.
The Crown lawyer told the judge: “Your takedown minute has not been complied with by X … or you could use the expression ‘defied’.”
The defence lawyer saying: “I seek continued name suppression until the takedown orders have all been complied with. They largely have and as you’ve seen there’s two to go.”
The two posts on X contained information that had been suppressed. If the defendant’s name was released it could point the public to the posts.
Despite a takedown order being issued by the judge, X has not removed the posts. The Crown’s lawyer saying: “X seems to be acting above the law of New Zealand and will not take them down.”
The judge also ordered Facebook to remove two posts which contained suppressed information and it did so. It was not clear why X had not.
X has not responded to 1News’ requests for comments this week. Emails have gone unanswered and there was no ability for media to submit queries on the website.
The judge in the case said: “In my experience of the overseas-located internet hosts, it is very difficult. And maybe it is the case that it is high time we work out what should be done about it.”
The judge asked police to continue to try and get X to comply, and said the court would have to consider further steps — including the possibility of contempt of court — if that didn’t happen.
Media lawyer and partner at law firm Bell Gully, Tania Goatley, said suppression of some information wasn’t uncommon in court cases.
“The key purpose of suppression in a court proceeding is to make sure when the fourteen members of the jury — who are just Joe Bloggs off the street, usually — come into the room, they have a fresh mind. They haven’t been contaminated by anything that they might have read on the internet,” she said.
Precedent in the Grace Millane case
Goatley said New Zealand courts have dealt with this issue previously and have found ways to navigate it.
During the Grace Millane trial. overseas media published suppressed information so journalists wanting to cover the case had to sign an undertaking, “confirming that if they were allowed in the room and to report on the backpacker trial, that they would agree to abide by all of the New Zealand court rulings”, Goatley said.
Last year, Brazil banned X from operating in the country after it refused to remove profiles spreading misinformation.
Technology commentator and Gorilla Technology CEO Paul Spain said, generally speaking, X followed the rules.
“Musk has said that X’s approach will be to comply with legal regulations in each market that they operate. Now, obviously, we’ve seen some variation to that,” he said.
“This is what we wonder about this current situation in New Zealand. Are they deliberately ignoring the guidance because they’ve got some reason to? Are they being lazy? That’s what we’re curious about,” Spain said.
