Elon Musk’s X to Compensate Trump with $10 Million | Science, Climate, and Tech News
Reports indicate that Elon Musk’s platform, X, has agreed to compensate Donald Trump approximately $10 million (£8 million) after suspending his accounts in the wake of the 2021 US Capitol riot involving his supporters.
This payment comes on the heels of a $25 million (£20 million) settlement that the US president’s legal team reached with Meta Platforms – the parent company of Facebook and Instagram – last month.
Mr. Trump initiated lawsuits against social media platforms, including Alphabet Inc, the parent company of Google, and their executives in San Francisco, claiming they unlawfully suppressed conservative voices, as reported by the Wall Street Journal on Thursday.
Twitter justified the suspension of Mr. Trump’s account by citing concerns that he could incite additional violence as he sought to stay in the White House after his defeat to former President Joe Biden in the 2020 election.
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Mr. Musk, who acquired Twitter in 2022 and rebranded it to X, has shown strong support for Mr. Trump, contributing $250 million (£202 million) to his 2024 election campaign.
The tech entrepreneur has been appointed by the president to lead the newly created US Department of Government Efficiency, abbreviated as DOGE, which aims to drastically cut down on federal bureaucracy.
According to the Journal, Mr. Trump’s legal team contemplated withdrawing the lawsuit considering the platform’s ownership transition and the burgeoning relationship between the two men, before ultimately agreeing to the settlement.
Legal representatives are expected to negotiate a similar arrangement with Alphabet, which banned Mr. Trump from YouTube following the Capitol riot.
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Neither X nor its former CEO Jack Dorsey, along with Alphabet and the White House, have responded to inquiries for comment.
Mr. Trump has issued pardons for around 1,500 supporters charged in connection with the violent events of January 6, 2021, when individuals stormed the Capitol in an attempt to hinder the certification of Joe Biden’s 2020 election victory.
Sky News has reached out to X for further comments.
