Trump and Elon Musk: The Intersection of Social Media and Politics

According to the Cambridge Dictionary, an echo chamber is “a situation in which people only hear opinions of one type, or opinions that are similar to their own.”

In recent years, with the rise of technology, journalism has taken a turn toward social media. Characterized by misinformation and the term “echo chamber,” which justifies only seeing news in your own bubble, separate from those who believe differently than you.

One of the biggest echo chambers is on the social media platform X, Elon Musk’s Twitter redo. Musk is one of the largest spreaders of misinformation on the platform, primarily due to him having more than 200 million followers.

A sophomore at Elmhurst University and an X user, Andrew Camic, perceives the platform as a space dominated by political content.

“I see a lot of Elon Musk tweets and a lot of political BS, especially now that the election was like two weeks ago,” said Camic.

Musk is a right-wing Trump supporter whose platform has amplified right-wing voices while suppressing left-leaning discourse. The platform’s algorithm prioritizes polarizing content, creating echo chambers where misinformation thrives. Trump, who was previously banned on Twitter for spreading misinformation, has since been unbanned by Musk.

“I don’t like that he is reinstating previously banned accounts at all. Accounts are banned for a reason,” said Camic. “Trump was banned for a reason because his tweets are just insane.”

Now, with the reelection of Trump, the news might take a turn to the right, and the right-wing content on X is just an example of how these next four years might look for journalism.

“It was bad before, and Twitter was always filled with right-wing comments and Trump supporters. If you had one liberal tweet, you would just get flamed, there is nobody defending you, it’s just the right-wing,” said Camic. “It is more severe after Trump got reelected.”

Trump’s 2020 campaign was characterized by frequent clashes with left-wing news outlets and journalists, often labeling them as fake news. In fact, Trump tweeted: “The FAKE NEWS media (failing @nytimes, @NBCNews, @ABC, @CBS, @CNN) is not my enemy, it is the enemy of the American People!”

In his 2024 campaign, “Trump pledged to imprison reporters, and strip major television networks of their broadcast licenses as retribution for coverage he didn’t like,” as stated by NPR.

“During the debate, when Trump was talking about Haitians eating dogs and cats, Musk was literally like, ‘Hell yeah man they are eating dogs and cats,’ stirring the pot and feeding into Trump,” said Camic. “He does not believe that Trump lost in 2020, and essentially says Kamala slept her way to the top.”

When it became clear that Trump would win the presidency again, Musk tweeted, “You are the media now,” reflecting Trump’s stance toward journalists and highlighting Musk’s belief in decentralizing traditional news outlets’ influence. His comment emphasizes the role of individuals in shaping narratives through social media platforms, ultimately blurring the lines between credible news and misinformation.

On Election Day, Musk went on X “praising men, amplifying anti-immigrant conspiracies, and accusing Democrats of voter fraud,” Vox reported.

“The fact that Elon Musk owns X and can make himself show up more on your feed whether you follow him or not is harmful,” said Camic. “I’m so close to just blocking him but who knows if that will even work.”

As misinformation continues to spread on X, even Musk’s own artificial intelligence model, Grok, has pointed out his role in the problem.

When Gary Koepnick, an X user, asked Grok who personally spreads the most misinformation on the social media platform, it answered: “Based on various analyses, social media sentiment, and reports, Elon Musk has been identified as one of the most significant spreaders of misinformation on X since he acquired the platform.”

Grok went on to say that “when [Musk] comments on or shares misinformation, it tends to gain legitimacy among his followers, which can have real-world consequences, especially during significant events like elections.”

Grok concluded that there is “substantial evidence and analysis suggesting that Elon Musk has spread misinformation on various topics, including elections,” per The Independent.

Musk’s support for Trump has not gone away, nor have Musk’s right-wing beliefs.

“I absolutely think Musk impacted the election by spreading misinformation,” said Camic. “I think Elon tries to target the uneducated; if you have half of a brain, what he says is the truth to you.”

As content algorithms prioritize sensational or polarizing posts, misinformation can spread rapidly, affecting the way people perceive news and events. This dynamic emphasizes the growing role of social media in shaping political discourse, where the distinction between fact and opinion can blur, with significant consequences for public understanding and engagement, particularly in events like elections.

“I think politics on social media is something you’ll never be able to get away from, but it should be monitored,” said Camic. “It doesn’t need to be violent or filled with hate; going on X always feels like an attack, and that is not okay, it makes politics very toxic.”

It should also be noted that Trump’s and Musk’s relationship has expanded since Trump tapped him to head his new addition, the Department of Government Efficiency.