Media

Donald Trump returns to X in victory for Elon Musk

Former president, who was banned from Twitter in 2021, could provide boost to the platform

Former president Donald Trump has returned to X after a year of silence. Photograph: Doug Mills/The New York Times
Former president Donald Trump has returned to X after a year of silence. Photograph: Doug Mills/The New York Times
Kate Conger
Mon Aug 12 2024 - 19:09

Donald Trump posted on X on Monday, handing a victory to Elon Musk, the social media platform’s owner, who for months has urged the former president to use the site again.

“They want to silence me because I will never let them silence you,” Mr Trump said in a campaign video posted to his account. “They’re not coming after me. They’re coming after you.”

Mr Trump shared the video before a scheduled interview with Mr Musk, which was set to take place on Spaces, a live-streaming feature on X on Monday. He followed it with several posts, including one that said: “Are you better off now than you were when I was president? Our economy is shattered. Our border has been erased. We’re a nation in decline.”

Mr Trump’s return to X after nearly a year of silence could provide a needed boost to the platform, which has faced increased competition from a rash of new social media platforms, including the former president’s Truth Social. X has also struggled to overcome scepticism from advertisers, especially after Mr Musk sued an influential advertising coalition last week.

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But if Mr Trump returns as a power user of the site, which helped fuel his political rise, it could attract new interest from political advertisers. During his time in the Oval Office, Mr Trump used the site as a megaphone to issue policy directives and pummel his rivals. At the beginning of his presidency, he posted about nine times a day but that pace accelerated throughout his time in office.

Mr Trump was banned from X, then known as Twitter, in 2021 after his supporters stormed the US Capitol in an attempt to halt the certification of the election. Twitter determined that Mr Trump’s posts to his 88 million followers spurred violence and his account was subsequently shut down.

Mr Musk, who acquired the platform in 2022, reinstated the former president’s account shortly after buying the company. He urged Mr Trump to come back to X, believing his presence would attract fresh engagement on the struggling site.

[ Musk’s toxic politics alienating customers and advertisers ]

But Mr Trump had since formed Truth Social, where he has 7 million followers. He’s contractually obligated to share social media posts there before turning to other platforms, except ones about his campaign and politics.

Shares in Trump Media & Technology Group, the parent company of Truth Social, opened lower on Monday and were down more than 4 per cent after Mr Trump began posting on X. Mr Trump owns a 60 per cent stake in the company, but he can begin selling his shares on September 19th, when a company lawyer has said a six-month lock-up period will expire for all corporate insiders.

[ Donald Trump will not benefit from the support of Elon Musk ]

Before sharing his campaign video on Monday, Mr Trump had posted on X only once since being reinstated, sharing a mug shot from his 2023 booking in Georgia on racketeering charges tied to trying to overturn his election loss.

Mr Musk and Mr Trump have become close in recent months, talking regularly about politics. Mr Musk formally endorsed the former president last month, just 30 minutes after an assassination attempt against Mr Trump. Mr Musk has also championed Mr Trump’s running mate, senator JD Vance.

This article originally appeared in The New York Times.

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