Elon Musk's Controversial Voyage into the Depths of Conspiracies

Elon Musk appears determined to turn the former Twitter into a space for far-right extremist views. Despite his previous promise to prevent the platform, now rebranded as X, from becoming a chaotic and extreme space, Musk has taken actions that contradict his earlier statement since October 2022.

Over the weekend, Musk welcomed back right-wing extremist Alex Jones, known for tormenting the families of the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting with false claims. Jones, previously banned for harassment and hate policy violations, was brought back by Musk following an unscientific poll and pressure campaign from his allies. This coincided with an interview Jones did with Tucker Carlson, whom Musk often promotes.

Musk not only gave in to pressure from the right-wing community and restored Jones' account, but also actively encouraged X users to follow it. Prior to being banned five years ago, Jones had nearly 900,000 followers on Twitter. By Monday evening, his followers had surged to 1.6 million on X.

This behavior cannot be viewed in isolation. It is part of a year-long pattern for Musk, who purchased Twitter in October 2022 for $44 billion. As the owner, Musk has overturned previous bans on racists, extremists, and others who were banned for repeatedly crossing the line. Musk, who removed those boundaries, has defended these actions by presenting himself as a staunch supporter of free speech, although he has also attempted to limit the speech of his critics.

What is perhaps most concerning about Musk's behavior is how he has actively supported and promoted the voices of right-wing extremists. Not only has Musk allowed them to come back to the platform, but as the platform's most popular user, he has consistently shared their misleading posts and appeared to seek their approval.

For example, instead of addressing the Sandy Hook shooting victims' families and explaining his decision to give Jones a large audience, Musk spent his time on Sunday evening engaging with the conspiracy theorist and other right-wing extremists on an audio stream, answering their questions and fulfilling their requests.

The audio stream featured Andrew Tate, a right-wing influencer facing charges from Romanian authorities for human trafficking and rape (which he denies); Laura Loomer, a self-described "Islamophobe" and right-wing extremist; retired Gen. Michael Flynn, who has embraced conspiracy theories; and Jack Posobiec, a far-right internet personality.

In essence, it was a glimpse into Musk's circle of advisers. The world's wealthiest man is surrounding himself with questionable figures and allowing them to influence the policies of X, a communications platform still utilized by world governments, top companies, news organizations, and public figures. Musk's association with some of the most notorious right-wing extremists is not taking place behind closed doors. It is happening out in the open for all to witness.

Despite the continued hopeful outlook for Musk to change his ways and reverse the mass departure of advertisers that has led to a significant decline in the company's value, it is evident that he has become entrenched in a web of conspiracy theories, dragging the entire platform down with him.