Elon Musk has branded the Australian government as 'fascists' in response to proposed legislation that would fine social media platforms up to 5% of their annual turnover for failing to curb misinformation. The Australian government introduced this bill to combat the spread of deliberate lies online, sparking a heated exchange with Musk, who champions free speech. Government officials, including Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and Assistant Treasurer Stephen Jones, have rebuked Musk's comments, emphasizing the need for such laws to protect Australians from scams, deepfake materials, and violent content. Musk's accusation follows previous clashes with the Australian government over content regulation on his platform, X (formerly Twitter), and adds to his global disputes over content moderation, including in Brazil and the UK.