Musk condemns the media, claims they went from ‘questioning the state’ to ‘doing their bidding’

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Twitter owner Elon Musk condemned the media on Wednesday, accusing it of serving the state rather than questioning it.

Musk, who has been criticized in the press as a threat to Democracy and a danger to "millions of people’s lives" ever since his purchase of the massive social media platform, blasted American journalists from his Twitter account Wednesday afternoon.

"Why did American media go from questioning the State and ‘speaking truth to power’ to doing their bidding?" Musk tweeted. 

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FILE - Tesla and SpaceX Chief Executive Officer Elon Musk speaks at the SATELLITE Conference and Exhibition in Washington, Monday, March 9, 2020. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh, File)

Musk followed up his query, stating, "To be clear, I’m not someone who thinks lots of government agencies should be abolished (maybe a few), but we should always question our institutions, as this strengthens the bedrock of democracy."

Accusing the press of being regime servants prompted a big reaction from Twitter users. Conservatives who see the press as ardent defenders of the current Democratic administration, offered tweets in support of Musk’s statement. 

Conservative comedian Tim Young replied, "Because the American media is 90% comprised of liberal Democrats... who REALLY didn't like Trump and are happy now."

Independent journalist Andy Ngo said this phenomenon came about through "Ideological capture by a generation of new journalists who were brainwashed into left-wing politics."

"Operation Mockingbird was likely the start of it. But eventually it became this worship of the expert class, the pursuit of establishment legitimacy, wanting invites to elite cocktail parties, and the pursuit of ratings through sensationalist war footage. Combine all of that," conservative journalist Ian Miles Cheong tweeted. 

However, liberals slammed Musk for his comments.

Condé-Nast legal affairs editor Luke Zaleski accused Musk of "gaslighting." 

"There is nothing anyone can say or do to confront this level of gaslighting. Nothing. That’s the loop we’re in. That’s the gaslighting paradox of Elon pretending he’s some savior of free speech and the victim of powerful invisible forces on his own personal social media platform," he wrote. 

Co-founder of Pillow Fight Company William LeGate claimed Musk of being reliant on the government himself, tweeting, "why are you so angry at the US Government which single-handedly has propped up every business you own & to which you’re 100% reliant on?"

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Elon Musk attends The 2022 Met Gala Celebrating "In America: An Anthology of Fashion" at The Metropolitan Museum of Art on May 02, 2022 in New York City. ( (Photo by Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty Images for The Met Museum/Vogue))

Liberal journalist Tom Coates said Musk was wrong

"Reminder: the world contains many news organizations, in different countries, with different politics. There is no conspiracy (or alignment) between the Washington Post, Britain's Guardian, Reuters, The Economist and the BBC. Where they agree it's because the facts are the same," he tweeted. 

In a tweet from earlier that afternoon, Musk blasted the press, saying, "Media want to control what you know, which is why citizen journalism is essential." 

As with his other post, the claim elicited much support from conservatives on the platform. Author Jim Hanson commented, "Citizen journalism rocks," and offered Musk a tip. 

"But the visibility filters are hiding too many accounts that cover controversial topics. Free the whole bird," he wrote. 

Conservative user Catturd added, "Main stream media is billionaires with a political agenda paying good looking people millions to read teleprompters and push their lies. Citizen journalists are the only ones to trust."

Though annoyed liberal users lashed out at this tweet as well. 

"Just gonna point out that Elon is an oligarch and rightwing media mogul who owns the massive social media platform you’re on right now. And while journalism is a vocational art anyone honest can practice—It’s also something you can garner expertise at with professional experience," Zaleski wrote.

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Liberal writer Thor Benson slammed Musk, tweeting, "Says someone responsible for the spread of a massive amount of disinformation. Maybe this isn't your wheelhouse." 

Washington Post columnist Taylor Lorenz got her digs in.

"It’s interesting which ‘citizen journalism’ Musk supports. Large leftist citizen journalists have been banned from twitter along with ElonJet."

Washington Post columnist Taylor Lorenz called Musk's management of Twitter a "disaster" during an appearance on BBC World News in 2022. (Screenshot/BBC)