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In a significant regulatory appeal, a national review panel has reversed a earlier ruling that prevented Australian-based users from seeing recorded content of the violent event involving influencer Charlie Kirk. The appeal was initiated by Elon Musk's social media platform, which contested an order issued at the request of the national eSafety commissioner.

Background on the Case and Classification Ruling

Following the death of Charlie Kirk at Utah Valley University in last year, the regulator petitioned the review board to assess and rate the circulating video. The board initially ruled the content was "unable to be classified", a designation that empowered the commissioner to order social media companies to restrict access to the videos for users in Australia.

Elon Musk's company challenged the decision for two separate videos depicting the Kirk incident. It also appealed a comparable ban on a separate video—showing the assault of Iryna Zarutska on a North Carolina train—which had also been deemed "unacceptable for distribution".

The Platform's Case and Board's Decision

Arguing its case, X contended that the footage in question contained only brief violence with no visible weapon. It was argued the footage was grainy and the camera quickly panned away from the victim to the bystanders.

The social media giant argued the video was not overly graphic, gratuitous, or offensive, stating it served as a factual documentation of "a notorious public event of historical and political significance that prompted extensive public discourse". X even compared the footage and the historic film of President John F. Kennedy's assassination.

The majority of the classification panel ultimately agreed that, "despite the terrible nature of the event," the content did not reach a level that was gratuitous, exploitative or offensive enough to warrant a 'refused classification' rating. However, they noted that a more detailed depiction with different editing could have met that threshold. Consequently, the panel changed the classification of the content to R18+.

The Minority Viewpoint

A minority on the panel held a contrary view, contending the video was "a shareable video for the probable aim of amusement and/or benefit (such as engagement metrics)". They also argued the comparison to the Zapruder JFK film was flawed, as that footage was made public years after the event, "after public sentiment regarding it had subsided".

Response Following the Outcome

In a statement on its global government affairs account, the platform expressed approval of the ruling.

"X fought this decision to defend freedom of expression and the importance of access to information about issues of public interest. We remain dedicated to safeguarding these principles."

A spokesperson for the eSafety commissioner also welcomed the board's decision, but noted that the new R18+ rating now means platforms "have obligations to prevent R18+ material being displayed to Australians under 18".

Recent Developments on Violent Content

In related news, the eSafety commissioner did not issue take-down orders to social media companies this week regarding disturbing videos from the Sydney beach incident shared across social media. Officials commented that while the images were upsetting, they did not reach the required standard for a "total ban" rating.

Instead, the companies have been instructed to use sensitive content labels and interstitials, such as blurring, on such content in line with their existing community guidelines.