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The Guardian
a day ago
- Business
- The Guardian
Oval and out: Musk and Trump's farewell marred by disillusionment
Another day, another made-for-great-television encounter between Donald Trump and the media in the Oval Office. The president, quite perversely, prides himself on the access he grants to a group of professionals he has routinely denounced as the 'fake news' and 'enemies of the people' – although any pain suffered from doing so has been eased by widening the net to include formerly fringe rightwing news organizations, who have responded in kind by lobbing friendly questions. But Friday's was no ordinary presidential briefing. That was clear when Trump acknowledged – surely uniquely – that it wasn't even primarily about him. 'Today, it's about a man named Elon,' he intoned, referring to Elon Musk, the tech billionaire who spent $275m of his own money to help Trump win November's election and return to the White House. Yes, the Special One – as in 'special government employee' – was leaving after 138 days at the heart of Trump's administration. He had spearheaded the purportedly cost-slashing 'department of government efficiency,' or Doge; boasted of feeding entire federal agencies 'to the wood chipper' fought with cabinet secretaries; publicly paraded with a chainsaw; terrorised federal workers; and generally fomented mayhem within the governing bureaucracy. All in the name of rooting out 'waste, fraud and abuse' – boldly forecasting in advance that he would be able to find $2tn worth of it. He had fallen well short of that target, and his popularity plummeted amid widespread resentment over his interference in the US government process. With that, the stock of his business empire, principally his electric vehicle firm, Tesla, had fallen too. So Musk – weeks ago seemingly ubiquitous and all-powerful – was not exactly going out on a high. The unaccustomed shadow of failure stalked him. Disillusionment did, too, as illustrated by his criticism of his Trump's Big Beautiful bill, which he warned would undermine Doge's cost-cutting endeavours. Still, the president was generous. 'He's one of the greatest business leaders and innovators the world has ever produced,' he said, as Musk – wearing a black baseball cap – stood beside the resolute desk. 'He stepped forward to put his very great talents into the service of our nation, and we appreciate it.' But apparently not everybody. For some people had been gossiping about Musk – and had snitched to the New York Times. Hopes that he would be afforded a graceful exit from the political arena were somewhat dashed when the Old Grey Lady of American journalism disclosed Friday that his illicit drug intake was much more widespread than previously known. The paper reported he used ecstasy and psychedelic mushrooms, substances whose effects on political judgment have not been hitherto explored. He was also said to have imbibed so much ketamine – a drug prescribed for depression – that it affected his bladder. Predictably, the report was the first question raised by the media. And, clearly primed, Musk decided that the best form of defence was to take the piss, so to speak – out of the source. 'The New York Times? Is that the same publication that got a Pulitzer prize for false reporting on the Russiagate?' he said, in a delivery that bore the hallmarks of being pre-rehearsed – and perhaps coached by Trump himself, as it reprised one of his favoured gripes against the 'fake news'. 'I think it is. That New York Times? Let's move on.' And move on things did – before anyone realised that Musk had failed to address, or deny, any of the revelations in the Times' report. Trump reclaimed his accustomed place centre-stage for a bit – riffing, in part, on Emmanuel Macron, the French president who had been in the news after his wife apparently shoved him as he was about to disembark from a plane on a visit to Vietnam. 'Do you have world leader-to-world leader marital advice?' the thrice-married and twice-divorced US president was asked, cast in the unlikely role of marriage guidance counsellor. Trump replied, 'Make sure the door remains closed,' before revealing, intriguingly, 'No, I spoke to him and he's fine. They're two really good people I know very well. And I don't know what that was all about.' Then somebody asked what had been, until then, an elephant in the room question: Elon appeared to have a black eye. 'What happened to you?' asked a reporter. Given the popular anger against Musk's imperious mien recently, there could have been any number of potential culprits: enemies in Maga-world, who have come to include Steve Bannon and Laura Loomer; a disaffected cabinet secretary taking exception to being insulted; perhaps even the disaffected mother of one of the billionaire's numerous children as he has embarked on a one-man baby boom enterprise. But Musk gave the most prosaic of explanations. The bruise had happened in a bout of horseplay with his five-year-old son, X Æ A-12 – who has accompanied him on previous visits to the White House but was, perhaps fortunately, absent this time. 'I was just messing around with X and I said, 'Go ahead, punch me I'm the face,' and he did. Turns out, even a five-year-old punching you in the face – actually, if you knew X. 'I didn't really feel much at the time and then, I guess, it really bruises up.' It seemed perfect as a metaphor for his reputation – and perhaps his psyche – as he prepared to leave Washington. Moments later – after Trump expounded on the alleged criminal havoc perpetrated by his favourite scapegoats, undocumented immigrants – Musk offered his take on the 'fundamental moral flaw' of the left, a political grouping which once feted him but now holds him in contempt. 'Empathy for the criminals, but not empathy for the victims,' said the man who previously told podcaster Joe Rogan that empathy was the 'fundamental weakness of western civilization' and open to exploitation. As he spoke, it was hard to avoid the impression that among those he considered victims was himself.
News24
2 days ago
- General
- News24
The Lead: News24 finds ‘hornet's nest' of fake news, with Andrew Thompson
Like most fake news these days, it all started with a friend's WhatsApp message sharing an article with the header: 'Cape Town drivers to face congestion tax starting June 1st'. A quick Google search showed that the City of Cape Town had already rubbished this article as fake news. But when News24 disinformation desk editor Andrew Thompson investigated the source of the article, he found a whole lot more than he bargained for. An Indian digital agency was using hijacked South African websites to publish fake, AI-generated articles under the byline of a fabricated journalist. 'These were very generic WordPress websites, using an easy and cheaply available template called 'GP Marketer', and its URL was only registered about two, three weeks ago, which makes the viral breakout success quite alarming.' Thompson tells The Lead how he went to work and why the rapid spread of fake news is so alarming. Later, we look at the day's headlines about crimes against women and children. Finally, News24 Food has a hot ticket to all the top events this winter. Listen on YouTube: Listen on Apple Podcasts:
News24
3 days ago
- General
- News24
How fake congestion tax story uncovered disinformation network built on hijacked SA domains
A marketing agency from India has hijacked at least two local websites and populated them with fake news about South Africa. Graphic by Mihle Mdashe
The National
5 days ago
- The National
Imam at Liverpool FC victory parade hits out at 'disgusting' rumours over car tragedy
A British imam has hit out at social media posts blaming Muslims for the carnage at the Liverpool FC Premier League victory parade on Monday. Adam Kelwick, who leads the Abdullah Quilliam Mosque in Liverpool, was at the parade with friends and family, when the tragedy happened. Four children were among 50 people injured, with one youngster seriously hurt, when a car drove into the crowd. Mr Kelwick, who diffused tension in Liverpool during the Southport riots last year, warned that online fake news was already spreading about the perpetrator's identity. Merseyside Police Assistant Chief Constable Jenny Sims said the 'horrific incident' was not being treated as terrorism following the arrest of a 53-year-old white British man at the scene. Look at what happened in Southport, was that not enough? Adam Kelwick The force said the suspect was the driver of the car, and that he was from the Liverpool area. Yet social media posts are falsely suggesting the detained man was a Muslim, and that police were concealing his identity, Mr Kelwick said. 'I'm very disappointed. When I went online like a lot of people, we saw the rumours they were starting to spread again,' he said in a social media post, while wearing a Liverpool T-shirt. Liverpool had been celebrating their 20th Premier League title on Monday, and Mr Kelwick reminded followers that Mohammed Salah, who was named the league's Player of the Year, held the trophy on the bus. He was worried that these online rumours could cause anti-Muslim riots as they did in August last year in the aftermath of the Southport stabbings. Mosques and hotels hosting asylum seekers were attacked in August last year after fake news spread online that the Southport killer of three girls had been a Muslim asylum seeker. More than 1,511 arrests were made that week. Mr Kelwick came into the spotlight then for inviting the rioters into his mosque for a meal, in an attempt to diffuse community tension. But his patience appeared to have run out this time. 'I think it's disgusting to be honest. Look at what happened in Southport, was that not enough?' he said. 'When we saw the chaos on our streets, when we saw our city centres being smashed up, when we saw mosques being attacked, when we saw immigration centres being attacked and people's businesses. Was that not enough?' He accused the people spreading those rumours of 'dragging' the incident 'into their narrative of turning people against each other'. Mr Kelwick urged his followers to call out the fake news online, by messaging the person spreading it to correct their mistake. But he was hopeful that Liverpool's communities would 'come together' to prevent a fall out. 'Since the riots last summer, we've come together with communities. People from all different parts of Liverpool who would never have mixed, never have met each other before, and we've built bridges, and we've built friendships,' he said. Prime Minister Keir Starmer said he had spoken to the Mayor of Liverpool about the incident, adding: 'Everyone, especially children, should be able to celebrate their heroes without this horror.' At a press conference late on Monday evening, Dave Kitchin from North West Ambulance Service (NWAS) said 27 people were taken to hospital and 20 people were treated at the scene, with four children among the injured. Nick Searle, Merseyside Fire and Rescue Service chief fire officer, said four people who were trapped under the car, including a child, were rescued by firefighters. Witness Mike Maddra told the PA news agency the 'car turned left, mounted pavement, come towards us and runs towards the buildings'. He said 'we got out the way and it was speeding up'. Mr Maddra said he thought he saw two people being hit and added, 'it looked deliberate'.
Yahoo
5 days ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
Charlie Hebdo files complaint against fake covers it calls 'Russian propaganda'
The French satirical newspaper Charlie Hebdo has filed a counterfeiting complaint in court against a series of fake covers that it says are pro-Russian propaganda. Charlie Hebdo's editorial team has identified about 15 fake front pages of the newspaper published over two years that they say "aim to make people believe that we are in favour of the policies of Putin," they said in a statement on Monday, referring to Russian President Vladimir Putin. The editors filed a complaint with a Paris court with the aim of "at least identifying the authors and possibly the instigators of this propaganda", lawyer Richard Malka told the AFP news agency. Images of covers using Charlie Hebdo's recognisable style, with cartoons mocking Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky or the Ukrainian army along with signatures of the newspaper's cartoonists have been making the rounds on Telegram, X and other social media. Other fake covers make fun of Britain's migration policy or push false conspiracy theories about the gender of France's First Lady Brigitte Macron. The complaint says the covers are "accompanied by captions or comments written in Russian". "There is an almost industrial approach that is accelerating, with several very high quality front pages, which could be misleading for those not familiar with the newspaper's editorial line," Malka said. "There is a clear intention behind this that appears to be pro-Russian propaganda." (with AFP) Read more on RFI EnglishRead also:Reporters Without Borders launches news platform to counter Russian propagandaRFI targeted by Russian disinformationFrench newspapers torn between tributes and defiance on Charlie Hebdo anniversary
