Elon Musk has often inflamed politically tense moments, raising worries for the US election
As Election Day draws nearer, social media posts by X owner Elon Musk are raising concerns that he will use his immense platform to question the legitimacy of the vote in the U.S. presidential election and perhaps call for resistance if Republican nominee Donald Trump loses
NEW YORK (AP) — Hours after an apparent attempt on Donald Trump's life over the weekend, Elon Musk took to his social platform X to post a thinking emoji and a comment that “no one is even trying to assassinate” the Democratic president and vice president.
In the midst of anti-Muslim riots in the U.K. — which were ginned up by a false rumor — Musk declared that "civil war is inevitable" in the country.
And when an anonymous X user distorted data to claim a surge in sketchy voter registrations in three U.S. states, Musk amplified the false post and called it “extremely concerning.”
All three posts sparked quick backlash from public officials who called Musk's words irresponsible and misleading. As his words amass millions of views and thousands of shares, they also illustrate the ability of one of the world's most influential people to spread fear, hate and misinformation during fraught political moments around the world. That's especially true because he owns the social platform that used to be Twitter, giving Musk the authority to shape how its content reaches users.
