Trump Interview with Musk Stutters After ‘Cyber Attack’

AFP/APP

Los Angeles: Elon Musk’s highly anticipated interview with Donald Trump faced a rocky start on Monday due to what Musk described as a cyber attack on his social media platform, X (formerly known as Twitter).

The “no limits” conversation began more than half an hour late, causing many listeners to miss it live—a significant setback for both figures involved.

Musk, the world’s richest man, tweeted, “There appears to be a massive DDOS attack on X. Working on shutting it down.” The interview was meant to rejuvenate Trump’s campaign, which has faltered since President Joe Biden’s withdrawal from the race.

Musk, a former Democrat, has recently supported Trump, especially after a gunman attempted to assassinate the Republican at a rally last month. However, technical difficulties—following Musk’s recent staff reductions—echoed the issues experienced by Trump rival Ron DeSantis during his campaign launch on the platform.

“We tested the system with 8 million concurrent listeners earlier today,” Musk noted.

Trump, banned from Twitter after the January 2021 Capitol riot, was reinstated by Musk. On Monday, Trump used his @realDonaldTrump handle to post multiple campaign ads and links to his website.

Musk, known for his criticism of the Democrats and for using X to amplify right-wing conspiracy theories, has faced accusations of transforming the platform into a megaphone for misinformation. He has frequently criticized liberal diversity and inclusion efforts, and spread far-right misinformation about immigration and voter fraud.

Trump is struggling to pivot amid strong support and polls for Kamala Harris, who has replaced Biden as the Democratic candidate. The conversation with Musk was expected to target young men aligned with Trump’s views, an audience less engaged with traditional rallies or conservative cable news.

Trump also participated in an interview last week with internet influencer Adin Ross, known for repeated bans from Twitch for policy violations.

‘Greater Responsibility’

X is under multiple federal investigations, aligning Musk with Trump, who faces numerous felony charges over his attempts to overturn the 2020 election results. Musk has increasingly shared priorities with the far-right, focusing on alleged censorship of conservatives and spreading inflammatory and false news about immigration.

Analysis from the Center for Countering Digital Hate reveals that Musk’s misleading claims about US elections have been viewed nearly 1.2 billion times on X. The European Union, investigating X under laws requiring digital firms to manage online content, reminded Musk of his obligations to combat harmful material. Thierry Breton, the EU’s top digital official, posted a letter outlining these duties.

Musk mocked Breton, comparing him to a French character from the 1975 comedy “Monty Python and the Holy Grail,” and responded with an obscene meme based on the 2008 film “Tropic Thunder.”

Trump campaign spokesman Steven Cheung accused the EU of election interference, stating, “Let us be very clear: the European Union is an enemy of free speech and has no authority of any kind to dictate how we campaign.”