CNN: Billionaire Elon Musk turns X platform into a machine to support former President Trump

Billionaire Elon Musk has leveraged the social media platform X as a source of current news for hundreds of millions of users, hoping to influence the course of the US presidential election in favor of Donald Trump.

Turn X into a political campaigning machine for Trump.

According to CNN, billionaire Elon Musk, owner of the X platform (formerly Twitter) and also the most followed person on that social network, has shifted from criticizing President Joe Biden to campaigning directly for former US President Donald Trump. This is considered a significant move for one of the leaders of a social media platform with immense influence on the global public.

Mr. Musk is leveraging the power of social media platform X to campaign for Mr. Trump (Graphic: X).

Social media platforms have played a crucial role in many previous presidential campaigns. Presidential candidates often leverage social media to garner voter support. Meanwhile, foreign actors use social media to try to interfere with election results. While some tech leaders have publicly announced their favorite candidates in the race for the White House, large tech platforms and their leaders generally do not openly influence how voters choose who they vote for. However, according to CNN, Musk is doing the exact opposite, turning social media platform X into his own political communication machine, thereby influencing over 190 million followers. Billionaire Musk officially endorsed Trump in a post last month, which received 2.3 million likes. Most recently, on August 12th, billionaire Musk invited Trump to participate in a live online chat lasting over two hours on X, during which Trump made at least 20 false statements on a wide range of issues. The former US President also used this chat to raise funds. Just before the event, Trump's campaign team posted on X: "We expect you to make this chat the biggest fundraising day for Mr. Trump." During the chat, Musk shared several pieces of information deemed inaccurate about Trump's opponent, Vice President Kamala Harris, expressed skepticism about the US election system, and spread the false claim that undocumented voters could participate. According to the Center for Countering Hate Spreading on Digital Platforms, Musk's statements about the US election on X received 1.2 billion views. Wendy Weiser, vice president of the Brennan Center for Justice at New York University School of Law, argues that information disseminated by prominent figures can be extremely damaging. "Mr. Musk has a social media platform, a financial resource, a reputation, and a vast toolkit to spread misinformation and conspiracy theories," CNN quoted Weiser as saying.

The real goal that Mr. Musk is aiming for.

For billionaire Musk, the privilege of being in close contact with Trump if the former US president is elected would give the Tesla and X CEO even more global power. This would also be very beneficial for the "Musk empire" business, which relies heavily on lucrative contracts and preferential policies from the US government .

A Trump victory in the upcoming presidential election would be the perfect springboard for billionaire Musk's business career (Photo: Getty Images).

In an exchange that took place on the night of August 12th, CNN reported that Musk had publicly expressed his desire to play a role in controlling spending in the new Trump administration. "I think it would be great if the U.S. government had an effective committee to oversee those activities and ensure that taxpayers' money is spent properly. I would be happy to be involved in supporting that committee," Musk shared. In response, Trump affirmed that he would welcome Musk's participation and praised the billionaire as a master of cost-cutting, citing the drastic cost-cutting measures Musk has implemented at his companies. Earlier in May, the Wall Street Journal reported that Musk intended to become an advisor to Trump if he were re-elected. However, at that time, Brian Hughes, a spokesperson for Trump's campaign, asserted that the former U.S. president had the sole say in who would fill which position if he were re-elected. Musk himself stated at the time that there had been no discussions about his role in the Trump administration should Trump become President in the November 2024 election. Notably, Musk previously served on the Business Advisory Council during President Donald Trump's first term and only withdrew after Trump decided not to continue participating in the Paris Agreement on climate change. The reunion between former President Trump and Musk is raising concerns about potential conflicts of interest, as the growth of two of Musk's largest businesses, SpaceX and Tesla, depends heavily on US government policies regarding energy and electric vehicles. Furthermore, Musk's companies are under investigation by the Securities and Exchange Commission, the Department of Justice , and the National Transportation Safety Board, and could potentially receive unlimited immunity from Trump if he becomes President after the November election. "The possibility of Musk being able to communicate directly and privately with Trump should he be re-elected would be a clear conflict of interest," asserted Darrell West, a senior research fellow at the Brookings Institute.

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Source: https://www.baogiaothong.vn/cnn-ty-phu-elon-musk-bien-nen-tang-x-thanh-co-may-ung-ho-cuu-tong-thong-trump-192240814105205831.htm