Washington Monthly - How to Rein In Elon Musk

Reporter Luke Goldstein writes on the necessary constrains by the government over Elon Musk’s growing control.

Elon Musk’s takeover of Twitter has inspired heated debate over what the deal will mean for free speech and democracy. Will the South African–born mogul welcome Donald Trump back to the platform? Will Musk use Twitter to skew debate—or even elections? Those are important questions, but another problem with the deal has received far less attention. Musk’s control of Twitter amplifies his already troubling attempts to exploit his satellite-based internet service. Musk has shown that he will use his proprietary Starlink satellite broadband system to control the fate of nations, disregarding the security of his adopted United States.

The good news is that the U.S. government has ample legal authority and constitutional precedent to ensure that no one person holds such unchecked power.

Last fall, I published a Washington Monthly article detailing how Starlink was building a massive fleet of low-earth-orbit satellites to provide broadband service to the remotest corners of the globe. At the time, Starlink had roughly 90,000 global users, mostly in rural areas. It seemed like this new communications infrastructure might help close the digital divide. A year later, Musk’s Starlink serves 400,000 individual and corporate customers, including many cruise ship lines and the U.S. Air Force.

Starlink has already emerged as a critical component of modern warfare. Since Russia invaded Ukraine, Musk’s service has been invaluable to the besieged nation, and has become vital to its offensive strategy. It’s no wonder that Vladimir Putin has repeatedly threatened to shoot down Musk’s satellites because of their critical role in the conflict. Meanwhile, Taiwanese officials have taken note of Starlink’s capabilities and are clamoring to receive satellite internet service, possibly from Starlink, before a potential conflict with Beijing. Xi Jinping, the Chinese leader, has echoed Putin in warning that his government won’t let Starlink encroach on its territory or interfere with its military operations.

Read the full article here.

ADDITIONAL COVERAGE

• Listen to reporter Luke Goldstein discuss the article on WNHN Progressive Talk Radio’s “The Attitude with Arnie Arnesen.”
• Read the transcript of the radio appearance.