Musk’s X posts fueled Belfast riots, researchers say

Researchers Say Musk’s X Posts Fueled Belfast Riots

Elon Musk’s amplification of anti-immigrant content on X was “instrumental” in stoking violent disorder in Belfast, according to a report from the Center for Countering Digital Hate published this week, with the findings landing just as the billionaire became the world’s first trillionaire following SpaceX’s record initial public offering.

The CCDH Findings

The CCDH report, titled “The Owner Amplifier,” found that Musk’s posts contributed 64 million views to content about the Belfast unrest — more than the combined reach of far-right figures Tommy Robinson and Restore party leader Rupert Lowe, who together generated the remainder of the 115 million total views across key accounts. Researchers also identified 3,930 comments containing calls for violence in replies to posts from the three figures, including 240 directed at Musk’s own posts.barrons

CCDH founder and CEO Imran Ahmed wrote that Musk, as X’s owner and most-followed user with over 240 million followers, “has again used the incident to amplify violent migrant narratives inspiring calls for violence, with little apparent consequence on the platform”. The UK’s online safety regulator Ofcom responded by placing X in a compliance program to improve its handling of illegal hate.counterhate

The Belfast Unrest

The disorder erupted after videos circulated on social media of a stabbing attack in north Belfast on June 8. The victim, Stephen Ogilvie, was hospitalized with serious injuries including the loss of his left eye. Police charged Hadi Alodid, a Sudanese man, with attempted murder. In the nights that followed, masked rioters set fire to homes, cars, and a bus, and hurled bricks and bottles at police, who deployed water cannons.nbcnews

Musk responded to criticism by suggesting that violence by migrants, not social media, was responsible for public anger, according to NBC News. He also shared posts alleging that Prime Minister Keir Starmer “hates white people” and amplified content from Robinson calling for mass deportations.france24

Musk’s Trillionaire Milestone

The controversy unfolded against the backdrop of SpaceX’s debut on the Nasdaq on Friday, June 12. The IPO raised $75 billion through the sale of 555 million shares priced at $135 each, valuing SpaceX at $1.77 trillion. Forbes declared Musk the world’s first trillionaire the same day, estimating his net worth at $1.1 trillion when combined with his Tesla holdings.forbes

The juxtaposition was not lost on critics. As France 24 reported, Musk faced renewed criticism over the Belfast riots on the same day he achieved the wealth milestone.france24