The Free Flow — March 27, 2025
Musk’s X suspends opposition accounts in Turkey, USCIS proposal sparks backlash, California pushes AI transparency, China’s leaked censorship dataset, and more.
The Digital Age
» Musk’s X Suspends Opposition Accounts in Turkey Amid Civil Unrest
Elon Musk’s X has suspended multiple opposition-linked accounts in Turkey as protests erupt over the arrest of Istanbul Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu, a rival of President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan.
Details:
The suspensions primarily affect university-affiliated activists sharing protest information. X’s Global Government Affairs team called the orders “unawful” and said they object.
Some accounts appear to be blocked only within Turkey while remaining accessible globally.
Context:
The Turkish Information and Communications Technology Authority has sent multiple court orders to X to block over 700 accounts, claiming they incite hatred. Officials have arrested 54 people linked to social media activity.
A 2022 law grants Turkish authorities broad powers to suppress online content, and X has complied with 86% of takedown requests in the second half of 2024.
» Public Condemns USCIS Proposal to Investigate Green Card Applicants’ Social Media Profiles
Some Americans have expressed outrage at the plan, writing to the agency about its chilling effects on free speech and its potential violation of the First Amendment.
Details:
The United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) published the proposal on March 5, 2025, and is collecting public feedback until May 5, 2025.
USCIS justified its proposal to gain access to green card applicants’ social media profiles as part of “enhanced identity verification, vetting and national security screening.”
Context:
Visa applicants living abroad must already hand over access to their social media accounts, but Trump’s USCIS is considering expanding that requirement to include green card applicants legally residing in the U.S.
» California’s AI Panel Advocates for Transparency and Risk Assessments
Governor Gavin Newsom’s Joint California Policy Working Group on AI Frontier Models has released a draft report advocating for increased transparency and independent oversight of AI models. The panel follows Newsom’s veto of Senate Bill 53, a prior AI regulation bill.
Key recommendations:
AI developers should disclose risks and vulnerabilities to those building on their models
Independent, third-party evaluations should assess AI models
Whistleblower protections should be considered for individuals reporting AI risks
Policymakers should explore a notification system for AI models with potentially harmful capabilities
The California Legislature is currently reviewing 30 AI-related proposals, and this report could shape ongoing regulation, including the revision of Senate Bill 53.
» Leaked Dataset Reveals AI-Powered Censorship System in China
A leaked cache of 133,000 entries shows that China is training a large language model (LLM) to systematically flag dissent and censor online content.
Detail:
Discovered in an unsecured database on a Baidu server, the system uses prompts similar to ChatGPT to train an LLM to identify politically “sensitive” content for rapid suppression.
High-priority targets include: military movements, Taiwan, pollution scandals, economic grievances, idioms critical of power, analogies to historical regimes, satirical content, CCP corruption or rural decline.
» X Faces Legal Complaint Over DSA ‘Trusted Flagger’ Violations
European Digital Rights (EDRi) and its Romanian member organization ApTI have filed a legal complaint against X for allegedly breaching its obligations under the EU’s Digital Services Act. The complaint accuses X of misleading Trusted Flaggers — designated entities tasked with identifying illegal content — by directing them to a non-functional online form.
Details:
Under the DSA, platforms must prioritize and swiftly process reports from Trusted Flaggers
In all texted EU languages except English, X’s reporting system wrongly instructs Trusted Flaggers to use a law enforcement-only form that rejects their submissions.
EDRi and ApTI attempted to resolve the issue with X before filing the complaint, but no action was taken for over a month.
Following the complaint, X reportedly began updating the faulty forms.
» X Sues India Over “Unlawful” Expansion of Censorship Powers
X filed a new legal challenge against the Indian government, alleging the Ministry of Electronics and IT has created a parallel system for content takedowns — empowering unaccountable officials to censor online content without legal oversight.
Details:
The March 5 court filing claims the Ministry is using a separate website to route takedown requests, sidestepping the legal conditions that limit such orders to issues like national security.
The lawsuit comes amid X’s broader legal fight with the Modi government over takedown demands dating back to the 2021 farmers’ protests.
» Gemini 2.5 and AI Image Generation Push Expressive Boundaries
Both Google and OpenAI marked major milestones in the race toward more powerful, expressive AI, reopening debates over what AI models should be able to do.
Details:
Google unveiled Gemini 2.5 Pro, its most capable model yet. It emphasizes “reasoning-first” architecture and top-tier performance on coding, math, and science tasks.
On the same day, OpenAI launched a new image-generation feature in ChatGPT, powered by its DALL-E model. The updates allow users to generate and edit images directly in conversation. OpenAI described the release as a “new high-water mark” for creative freedom and noted that while some outputs may be controversial, its philosophy is to allow expression within society’s evolving bounds.
» Romania Defends Social Media Crackdown Against Musk Censorship Claims
Pavel Popescu, vice president of ANCOM (Romania’s telecom and media regulator), said his agency is combating foreign disinformation, not suppressing free speech.
Context:
His response pushes back on accusations from Elon Musk and U.S. officials that it’s censoring online speech.
Romania’s top court also recently annulled a presidential primary win by ultranationalist candidate Călin Georgescu, citing evidence of foreign election interference.
The Brussels Effect
» Philippines Pushes for Digital Services Act to Regulate Social Media
Philippine Presidential Communications Office (PCO) Chief Jay Ruiz has urged lawmakers to pass a Digital Services Act modeled off the EU’s regulatory framework to combat harmful online content and misinformation.
Details:
Ruiz criticized the slow response of foreign platforms like Meta, TikTok, and YouTube to takedown requests, citing their lack of physical offices in the Philippines.
He proposed these companies either strengthen self-regulation or collaborate with the government to improve misinformation detection.
He warned about the rising threat of AI-generated deep fake scams impersonating public figures. However, as The Future of Free Speech’s Executive Director, Jacob Mchangama, pointed out on MSNBC, no evidence from the 2024 elections worldwide showed deep fake campaigns have impacted outcomes.
» Texas and Virginia Reject EU-Style AI Regulation
Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin vetoed a sweeping AI oversight bill, while Texas lawmakers gutted a similar measure, signaling a pushback against European-style AI regulation in favor of innovation-friendly frameworks.
Details:
Inspired by the EU’s AI Act and Biden-era guidelines, Virginia’s HB 2094 and the original Texas Responsible AI Governance Act targeted algorithmic fairness and risk mitigation. Critics, however, called the legislation overly burdensome and vague.
Youngkin's veto cited economic competitiveness and startup burdens, echoing concerns raised about Colorado’s newly enacted AI law.
The Chamber of Progress estimate Virginia’s original bill could have cost developers $30 million in compliance — a significant barrier for small firms.
Protest Watch
Mass Arrests and Media Crackdown as Turkey Erupts over Imamoglu’s Detention: In last week’s Free Flow, 37 people had been detained for “provocative” social media posts following Istanbul mayor, Ekrem İmamoğlu’s, arrest — whose detention has been widely criticized as politically motivated. Turkey entered its fourth day of civil unrest this week, with more than 340 people detained during recent protests and growing evidence of a coordinated crackdown on dissent.
Greenpeace Ordered to Pay Over $660M for Alleged Protest Backing: A North Dakota jury has ruled that Greenpeace must pay over $660 million in damages to Energy Transfer, the company behind the Dakota Access Pipeline, for allegedly organizing and funding protests aimed to block pipeline construction nearly a decade ago.
Pro-Palestine Students Sue Trump Admin: Two Cornell Students and a Professor filed a suit to challenge the constitutionality of Trump’s executive orders “Protecting the United States from Foreign Terrorists and Other National Security and Public Safety Threats,” as well as “Additional Measures to Combat Anti-Semitism.”
Federal Judge Blocks the Deportation of Columbia University Student Yunseo Chung: A federal judge blocked the deportation of 21-year-old Chung, a South Korean green card holder and Columbia University student, after the administration attempted to remove her for participating in a peaceful Gaza solidarity protest. Chung sued the government, alleging retaliation for her protected speech. The judge issued a temporary restraining order and prohibited her transfer outside the Southern District of New York.
Canadian Free Speech Campaigner Arrested in Australia: Chris Elston, known as “Billboard Chris,” was fined and forcibly removed by police in Brisbane this week for peacefully protesting in public, days ahead of a major legal showdown challenging Australia’s online censorship laws. Elston, a controversial critic of gender ideology and children’s medical transition, is in Australia to join Elon Musk’s X in appealing a government takedown order related to one of his posts, in which he criticized the appointment of a transgender activist to a WHO advisory panel, and was geo-blocked in Australia at the direction of the eSafety Commissioner.
Press Freedom
U.S. Defunds Global Media Outlets: On March 14, 2025, President Trump signed an executive order terminating grants for several U.S. funded international media outlets, including Radio Free Asia, Radio Free Europe, Voice of America, Middle East Broadcasting Networks, and the Office of Cuba Broadcasting. These outlets provide independent journalism in regions with heavy censorship.
Missouri Bill Aims to Protect Speech from Legal Harassment: Missouri lawmakers are advancing anti-SLAPP legislation. The proposed bill, sponsored by Senator Mike Henderson, has been endorsed by the Missouri Press Association and Missouri Rights to Life.
China Sentences Taiwan-Based Publisher for “Separatism”: A Shanghai court has sentenced Gusa Publishing editor-in-chief Li Yanhe to three years in prison for “inciting separatism.” his publishing house is known for printing books critical of the Chinese Communist Party, but Chinese authorities have not specified which of Li’s actions or publications led to the separatism charge. Li was fines 50,000 tuan and pleaded guilty.
Quick Hits
Columbia Caves Under Trump Admin Pressure: After the Trump administration threatened to cut $400 million in federal funding, the university agreed to adopt a new definition of antisemitism, place its Middle Eastern, South Asian and African Studies Department under review, and increase staffing at its Institute for Israel and Jewish Studies. Civil liberties accused the university’s policy shift of abandoning the principles of academic freedom.
Turkish PhD Detained Amid Crackdown on Pro-Palestinian Speech: Rumeysa Ozturk, a Turkish doctoral student at Tufts University, was detained by federal agents in Somerville, Massachusetts. The Department of Homeland Security revoked her visa, alleging she supported Hamas, but provided no public evidence. Despite a judge’s order not to move her, Ozturk was transferred to a Louisiana ICE detention center.
French Researcher Denied U.S. Entry Over Criticism of Trump Administration: On March 9, 2025, a French researcher from the National Center for Scientific Research (CNRS) was denied entry into the U.S. while en route to a conference near Houston. Upon his arrival, U.S. authorities conducted a random check and searched his electronic devices, where they discovered messages criticizing the Trump administration’s research policies. U.S. Officials said the scientist was found in possession of confidential information from Los Alamos National Laboratory, obtained without authorization, and denied any political motivation.
Georgetown Fellow Arrested, Faces Deportation Under Foreign Policy Provision: Badar Khan Suri, an Indian national and postdoctoral fellow at Georgetown University, was arrested by federal immigration agents on March 17, 2025, and placed in deportation proceedings. His visa was revoked under a rarely used provision allowing the Secretary of State to remove noncitizens deemed a threat to U.S. foreign policy — the same one invoked in the case of Mahmoud Khalil, a green card holder and pro-Palestinian activist. DHS claims Suri spread “Hamas propaganda” and has ties to a suspected terrorist. His lawyer argues he is being targeted to the Palestinian heritage of his U.S. citizen wife and their suspected political views.
UK University Fined £585,000 Over Campus Free Speech Failures: England’s higher education regulator has issued a record fine against the University of Sussex for creating a “chilling effect” on free expression through its trans and non-binary equality policy, which the Office for Students said suppressed lawful speech and could hinder efforts to protect students from harassment or stereotyping.
German Government Fires Lawyer for Speaking out on Gaza: Lawyer Melanie Schweizer was dismissed from the Federal Ministry for publicly condemning Israel’s actions in Gaza and Germany’s support for the war.
Federal Court Blocks Texas A&M’s Campus Drag Ban: After the Texas A&M University system’s Board of Regents attempted to prohibit all drag shows across 11 campuses, citing a Trump executive order targeting “gender ideology,” a federal judge ruled the school cannot ban a student-organized drag performance and affirmed that drag is expressive conduct under the Constitution.
Nikki Glaser Warns Detainment is Chilling Political Satire: Comedian Nikki Glaser says death threats and fear of detainment are having a chilling effect on performers engaging political satire — particularly when targeting former President Trump.