New York — As the 2024 U.S. presidential election draws closer, Elon Musk, the owner of the social media platform X, has emerged as a central figure in the dissemination of misinformation. Over the past week, Musk has repeatedly used his vast digital influence to promote false claims, from a fabricated bomb threat at a Trump rally to misleading information about immigrants and doctored election predictions. His actions have fueled concerns about the role of social media in exacerbating political tensions and distorting public perception.
One of the most concerning incidents occurred on Wednesday, when Musk reshared a false report claiming that a bomb had been discovered near the site of a planned Trump rally in Long Island, New York. Despite local police quickly debunking the claim and stating that no explosives had been found, Musk’s post had already gone viral, reaching over 4.3 million views and being shared nearly 10,000 times within hours. Although a community fact-check was later attached to the post, the damage had already been done, with the misinformation spreading widely across X’s platform.
This false bomb threat claim is just the latest in a series of controversial posts from Musk. Earlier in the week, he made waves by sharing a now-deleted post about an alleged second assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump. Musk’s comment—“no one is even trying to assassinate Biden/Kamala”—quickly attracted backlash, with many accusing him of making light of serious threats while fueling further division in an already polarized political climate. Musk defended his post as a joke, but the rapid spread of the message suggests it resonated with certain conspiracy-driven corners of the internet.
In another instance of spreading disinformation, Musk reshared a hoax affidavit that falsely claimed ABC News had rigged its debate to favor Vice President Kamala Harris. The document, full of obvious errors, was quickly debunked by ABC, but not before it gained significant traction on X, boosted in part by Musk’s influential platform. His decision to share the fraudulent document raised fresh questions about his willingness to entertain conspiracy theories, despite the potential impact on public trust in democratic institutions.
Musk’s involvement in promoting false claims extended further with his resharing of a heavily edited video falsely accusing Haitian immigrants in Springfield, Ohio, of eating pets. The video, taken from a city hearing, was misleadingly framed to suggest a local official had confirmed the claim, when in reality, both the mayor and the city manager refuted it. Nonetheless, Musk’s post racked up nearly 8 million views and sparked further anti-immigrant rhetoric, echoing baseless claims pushed by figures like Donald Trump and JD Vance.
Beyond these incidents, Musk also played a role in spreading election-related disinformation. On Wednesday, he shared a fake electoral map, supposedly created by statistician Nate Silver, that showed Trump winning 312 electoral votes in the 2024 election. Silver later clarified that the map was a fabrication, and his actual projections showed the race as much closer, with key battleground states like Michigan, Pennsylvania, and Nevada still undecided. Yet Musk’s misleading post contributed to a growing narrative among his followers that Trump was on track for an easy victory.
Since taking over Twitter in 2022 and rebranding it as X, Musk has made sweeping changes to the platform’s moderation policies. He has slashed the company’s moderation teams, eliminated the verification system, and created financial incentives that reward users for posting viral content—whether accurate or not. These changes have made X a breeding ground for disinformation, particularly around politically charged topics such as the upcoming election. Musk’s decision to reinstate banned conspiracy theorists and allow hate speech to proliferate has only worsened the situation, with false claims gaining greater visibility.
Musk’s role in amplifying misinformation is particularly significant due to his massive following—nearly 200 million users—combined with X’s algorithms that boost his posts to the top of users’ feeds. This gives him an outsized influence over the platform, allowing false information to reach millions within minutes. His frequent attacks on the mainstream media and journalists further complicate the information ecosystem, making it harder for voters to discern what is factual in the lead-up to the election. As the 2024 presidential election approaches, the impact of disinformation on platforms like X is likely to increase, particularly as high-profile figures like Musk continue to spread false or misleading information. The consequences for public trust in the election process, as well as for broader political stability, are profound. In a time of heightened political tension, the actions of Musk and other influential social media figures are likely to come under increasing scrutiny as voters seek reliable information in an ever-more complicated and contentious digital landscape.
