Elon Musk is closing the press office in Germany

After taking over Twitter, Elon Musk apparently closed the company’s entire press office in Germany. The former head of the department recently explained this to the Hamburg labor court, where he is suing against his dismissal.

Apparently, Twitter’s press and public relations department in Germany no longer exists. That comes from a report by the news agency Bloomberg citing a statement by the former head of the communications department.

Twitter closes press office in Germany

Before the Hamburg labor court, where the former head of the department is suing against his dismissal, he said that the dissolution of the press team was affecting the operation of Twitter in Germany. Accordingly, it is “very difficult” to handle external communication for Germany via the European Twitter headquarters in Dublin.

Both the EU and Germany have been observing developments on Twitter with concern since it was taken over by Elon Musk. This is especially true when it comes to legal standards. EU Commissioner Thierry Breton, for example, reminded Musk of the rules within the European Union shortly after his deal.

“Quite problematic”: the EU and Germany observe developments on Twitter

The federal government is also watching Twitter with concern. Government spokesman Steffen Hebestreit recently described the development as “quite problematic”.

Chancellor Olaf Scholz is even considering withdrawing from the platform. With approximately eight million Twitter users in Germany the concerns of the federal government appear to be justified. The withdrawal of the local press office should also make communication more difficult.

This is especially true in view of the German regulations against hate and disinformation online, which are considered the strictest in the EU. In this context, the NetzDG provides for the deletion of relevant posts. Otherwise, the platform operators face fines of up to 50 million euros.

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