One Month on X: Elon Musk Amplifies Fringe Politics, Conspiracies and Self‑Promotion

Between Sept. 17 and Oct. 17, an analysis of Elon Musk’s public activity on X found he posted, replied to or shared content 1,716 times—about 55 interactions per day. His output blended promotion of his businesses with frequent commentary on contentious political topics, conspiracy theories and culturally polarizing incidents.

Overview and scope

Nearly half (49%) of Musk’s posts during the period addressed politically charged topics (defined as references to government officials, political commentators or policy debates). About 41% of posts focused on his companies: his AI startup xAI appeared most often (about 21% of posts), Tesla in roughly 11% and SpaceX in about 6%.

Fringe ideas and conspiracy amplification

Musk repeatedly amplified ideas and claims that analysts describe as extreme or debunked, including variants of the antisemitic “great replacement” narrative and an unproven claim that the FBI staged the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol. Observers say the repetition of such material on a platform where he has a massive audience both normalizes and spreads fringe content.

Crime, judges and immigration

One in eight posts was about crime, and Musk highlighted incidents in places where he does not live, including Minnesota, South Carolina and San Francisco. He posted repeatedly about crime in San Francisco over a two-day span, despite that city recording one of its lowest homicide counts in decades. Musk also targeted judges and prosecutors—posting about judges 52 times and at points calling for broad removals of “corrupt” judges while citing foreign examples as models.

Immigration featured in about 8% of his posts; he shared hardline messaging and warned that mass migration could harm countries such as Britain and Japan. Critics say that framing traffics in dog whistles to white-identity politics and inflames cultural fears without evidence of a migrant-driven crime wave.

Race and selective amplification

Race was prominent in Musk’s activity. He shared or replied to posts that included images of Black defendants 41 times in the 31-day period, often in cases where victims were white. At times he amplified posts or accounts linked to white‑supremacist views and used emotionally charged captions such as “He will kill again.” Experts note that these patterns can reinforce racially charged narratives even when official data indicate most violent crime occurs within the same racial group.

Business promotion and personal branding

Alongside political content, Musk frequently plugged his companies and personal brand. His posts referenced quotes, interviews and clips that help sustain his public mythology; roughly 6% of posts explicitly focused on his own persona or viral quotes. xAI was the most‑frequent business topic, followed by Tesla and SpaceX.

Influence and intent

Musk has said he plans to concentrate on his companies after a period of visible political engagement earlier this year. Still, his prolific posting keeps him politically relevant: with more than 229 million followers on X, his messages routinely reach millions. “He can make himself inescapable,” said Thad Kousser, a political science professor at UC San Diego. Rob Lalka, a business professor at Tulane University, added that Musk has a knack for spotting and shaping cultural trends.

What analysts say

“He’s not necessarily persuading a broad undecided audience; he’s reinforcing and maintaining influence among those who already follow him,” said Darren Linvill, co‑director of Clemson University’s Media Forensics Hub. Joan Donovan, an assistant professor at Boston University, warned that messages about the decline of Western civilization function as dog whistles for white‑identity politics.

Taken together, Musk’s month on X offers a near real‑time view of how a single, highly visible voice can mix corporate promotion with political signaling, amplify conspiratorial narratives and shape public conversation without holding formal office.