Entrepreneurial billionaire Elon Musk, the owner of SpaceX and Tesla, is seen easily in the eye of controversy. Be it from his tweets or any public declaration, Musk knows how to get extreme reactions.
His behaviours have been polarizing—astonishing to outrageous. Here is a review of ten of the most notable controversies surrounding Musk, putting forward a complicated and, time and again, problematic public persona.
1. Peddling Anti-Semitic Conspiracy Theories
In November 2023, Musk had faced backlash for furthering the dangerous antisemitic conspiracy theory on X (formerly Twitter). He liked a specific post that suggested Jewish people were behind the replacement of white populations with immigration, an ultra-debased and discredited theory commonly known as the “Great Replacement.”
You have said the actual truth
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) November 15, 2023
Musk would later concede that the post was an error on his part and referred to it as “the worst and dumbest” he had ever made. This incident led to a major retreat by the advertisers from his social media platform.
2. Touting the Pizzagate Conspiracy
Only a few days later, Musk once again put himself under scalding water, posting a meme related to the “Pizzagate” conspiracy theory. This most disproved theory alleged that leading democrats were running a paedophile ring out of a pizza restaurant in Washington. Though he deleted the post quickly, it drew condemnation for perpetuating false and dangerous narratives.
3. Handling of Ukraine’s Starlink Network
Last October 2023, Musk admitted he blocked Ukraine from using SpaceX’s Starlink network at a very different time in the conflict between Russia and Ukraine. He had admitted to refusing Ukraine’s request for the place of Starlink in a planned drone attack on Russia’s warships. This was because he was worried it would increase the threat of War. It meant, therefore, that he was taking Russia’s side and, because of that, meddling in Ukraine’s defence efforts.
4. Stepping down as Twitter CEO
I will resign as CEO as soon as I find someone foolish enough to take the job! After that, I will just run the software & servers teams.
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) December 21, 2022
When Musk took over Twitter in late 2022, he did something quite curious: he said he would step down as CEO if a majority of users voted for that. The vote came in overwhelmingly in favour, but Elon Musk did not immediately quit his job. He began to joke that his dog was a CEO and appointed himself chief technology officer. His flippant attitude toward leadership duties drew criticism for a lack of seriousness.
5. Prohibiting Journalists from X
In December 2022, Musk was the centre of contention after he resulted in the banning of many journalists who had been monitoring the whereabouts of his personal jet. He reasoned out that they were doxxing him by putting his life on the line. This move was controversial, as it was viewed to contradict his commitment to free speech and transparency. This brought allegations of censorship.
Last night, car carrying lil X in LA was followed by crazy stalker (thinking it was me), who later blocked car from moving & climbed onto hood.
Legal action is being taken against Sweeney & organizations who supported harm to my family.
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) December 15, 2022
6. Reinstating Donald Trump
Another highly debated topic was the reinstatement by Musk of Donald Trump’s Twitter account in November 2022. He had been banned after the January 6 Capitol riot but was let back on the site by Musk, who claimed it was a matter of free speech. The reinstatement of Trump and other controversial figures put into question the policy enforcement of the platform.
Reinstate former President Trump
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) November 19, 2022
7. Sharing Misinformation about Paul Pelosi
In October 2022 alone, he shared a link to an unfounded claim for the attack on Paul Pelosi, Nancy Pelosi’s husband, that stated it was related to his personal life—a claim totally devoid of any evidence. Musk has deleted the tweet, but it serves for illustration of his tendency to amplify doubtful content.
8. Controversial Comments on Immigration
Again, in May 2024, Musk put himself in the midst of controversy over his comments related to illegal immigration. He declared that it’s much easier to get into the country illegally than to go through the tiring process of legal immigration into the U.S.
Because I am raising concerns about the flood of unvetted illegal immigrants overwhelming American cities, the press will often characterize me as “anti-immigrant”.
As an immigrant myself, nothing could be further from the truth.
I am very much in favor of increased and…
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) March 9, 2024
Though he made it very clear that he is a huge supporter of legal immigration, the comment was again received controversially as people found him insensitive and not so much in favour of immigration policy analysis.
9. SpaceX Move to Texas
Musk announced that SpaceX and X would be relocating their headquarters from California to Texas in 2024, partly because of a Texas law about parental notification regarding pronoun changes for their children at school. Critics claimed that it had more to do with Musk’s political and personal stances than business strategy.
This is the final straw.
Because of this law and the many others that preceded it, attacking both families and companies, SpaceX will now move its HQ from Hawthorne, California, to Starbase, Texas. https://t.co/cpWUDgBWFe
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) July 16, 2024
10. Antics on Social Media and Controversial Posts
Musk’s behaviour on social media has been erratic for a long time. Outright lies regarding Tesla’s capabilities or merely tweeting harebrained thoughts, he has spawned quite a number of controversies with his online presence. These range from the spread of misinformation or remarks that move his companies’ stock prices.
Quite a lot of Elon Musk’s controversies are a reflection of his bold, unfiltered personality and how he just likes to push things. While for some people, like me, he seems to be the visionary, to others he acts recklessly. Whatever the case may be, there is no denying his effect on the public discourses—a constant light that has to turn both ways to the barrage of praise and criticism alike.
