Is Elon Musk influencing world politics?
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This BBC podcast is supported by ads outside the UK. He's the richest man in the world and the owner of X, one of the biggest social media platforms, and is going to have a role in the upcoming Trump administration. Like a lot of the world right now, we're talking about Elon Musk. And over the last few days, he's been sharing his views on European politics.

We know he's never shy to tweet his political views. And now he's been making his feelings known about politicians in countries like Germany and the UK. Recently, he endorsed the far-right German party AFD ahead of elections there next month. While over in the UK, he's criticized Prime Minister Keir Starmer repeatedly over the last few days.

Musk's tweeting hasn't gone down well with some European leaders. And it's not just Europe that Musk's been vocal about. In the last 18 months, he was a key figure in the US election, where his endorsement was crucial for the incoming President Donald Trump. Well, in South America, he's got into disagreements with figures in Brazil and Venezuela.

So in this episode, we're asking, is Elon Musk influencing world politics? I'm Ikra Farooq, and you're listening to What's in the World from the BBC World Service. ♪

So let's start in Europe. Here to tell us more about all of this is Jessica Parker, who's a BBC correspondent in Berlin. Hey, Jess. Hello. Tell us about the countries in Europe he's been tweeting about. Yeah, I mean, obviously, he's already been really involved over in the US, not in Europe, where he's been a close ally of President-elect Donald Trump. But yes, he seems to have his eyes on Europe, particularly in recent days, the United Kingdom.

Kingdom, issues centred on a series of high profile cases where men mainly of Pakistani descent were convicted of sexually abusing predominantly young white girls dating over a decade back. And among other things, Elon Musk, who's been talking a lot about this on his platform, he accused the current prime minister, Keir Starmer, who used to be a chief prosecutor in the UK, of being a

complicit in the rape of Britain. And Keir Starmer responded this week saying that he tackled the issue head on when he was chief prosecutor. He attacked misinformation, he said, that was being spread and said he wouldn't tolerate a discussion based on lies without calling it out. So Keir Starmer coming out to respond to that. And then over in Germany, Elon Musk

Pender, a really controversial article quite recently supporting, endorsing Alternative für Deutschland, the AFD, the far-right party here that's polling second, is polling strongly here in Germany ahead of the snap election. But this is a party that's classed as right-wing extremist by domestic intelligence in certain German states, but one that Elon Musk is definitely getting behind.

And he's doing a bit of a sit down interview with the leader of the AFD, right, on his channel.

Yes. So he's going to host one of these live discussions on his X platform with the AFD's Chancellor candidate, Alice Weidel, on Thursday. And the AFD appear pretty excited by this. It's an event that's been pinned to Alice Weidel's profile on X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter. I mean, the AFD, they often complain that they feel in Germany they're not

treated by German media fairly. And as they see it, the establishment as well, they believe they're smeared. But this is going to be a fascinating moment because this comes just weeks before that snap election in Germany after the coalition government here in Berlin collapsed, potentially giving the AFD a huge platform, not just in Germany, but internationally as well,

Now, politics is a bit of a risky business and there's no way we can get into Elon Musk's brain. But what do you think he gets out of this? Why is he doing this? He obviously got really involved in the US presidential election, supporting Donald Trump. And subsequent to that, he's been this frequent supporter

visitor, even semi-resident from what you can tell at Mar-a-Lago, the Winter White House where Donald Trump has been as he awaits his inauguration. And then he is turning his attention, it seems, increasingly over to Europe as well. I mean, he seems to be backing Trump

movements that follow a little bit of a pattern, so to the right of politics, even to the far right of politics, although that's a label in terms of the AFD that he rejected, parties that are very strongly sceptical of what they see as mass immigration and the impact that that has on Western societies, culturally, for example. So there does seem to be an ideological drive there as well. But of course, you know, for his party,

detractors, what he's doing is totally inappropriate. And some people are calling him out on that basis. It has been kind of interesting to see the way European leaders have been responding to all this. We don't really know which way they're going to go. Let's have a little listen to what French President Emmanuel Macron had to say.

Ten years ago, if we had been told that the owner of one of the world's biggest social networks would support a new reactionary international movement and intervene directly in elections, including in Germany, who would have imagined it? This is the world we live in, and the world in which we have to be diplomatic.

And as well as Macron, we've heard from Germany's top politician, Olaf Scholz. He had some pretty cutting words. He said, don't feed the troll. So, Jess, how are European leaders going about responding to Musk? Yeah, I mean, I think they're in the process of figuring that out. How do you respond to the interventions of a man who,

has this huge social media platform, X, a billionaire. They're trying to find their way. I mean, as I mentioned before, the UK prime minister has spoken out this week. He was being directly attacked over an extremely serious and sensitive issue.

And Chancellor Olaf Scholz, I think maybe typically being a little bit more understated in his intervention compared to Starmer and Macron. He said in a magazine interview over the weekend, don't feed the troll, as you mentioned. But he did have a little bit of a jab at Musk at the same time, describing him as an erratic individual.

billionaire. But the central point he seemed to want to make, Mr. Scholz, is that it will be up to the people of Germany to decide the fate of the country ahead of those elections later next month. But nevertheless, I think Germany does look to be potentially this

next testing ground for Musk's willingness to wade into national politics. He's done it in the US where he actually lives and now appears to be doing it in Europe as well. And what about the politicians Elon Musk is a fan of? Do we know the ones in Europe that he gets on well with, that he likes? Yeah, well, I mean, he did seem to like Nigel Farage from Reform UK, which

Before then deciding that Nigel Farage should actually go as leader from Reform UK in a bit of a shock twist. He likes the AFD, Mr. Musk, in Germany. A part, as I mentioned, his signature issue has certainly become immigration and what they see as uncontrolled mass immigration of the recent years.

past. And he's struck up a rapport as well, it appears, with Giorgia Maloney. She's the Italian prime minister. So there is this pattern, I think, of people that he seems to like who are from maybe right-wing nationalist or even far-right figures.

Although, as I say, he has sort of sometimes rejected that far-right label in certain cases. But movements and people who have a strong focus on immigration and the impact of immigration as they see it on Western societies. And look, for his fans, he is giving...

boost to these movements and voices. So some people support that. But for his critics, he is wrongly, even outrageously, interfering in countries' domestic affairs. We've got the elections in Germany coming up next month.

How do you think this could influence those elections? Musk could influence those elections? He is going to be giving a platform to Alice Weidel, who is the leader or co-leader, but the chancellor candidate of Alternativa for Deutschland. And I think the AFD appear very keen to capitalise on that opportunity.

And journalists will be listening. People will be listening. It will no doubt create further coverage and give, I guess, oxygen to all of this. And it's a balance, isn't it? Because Elon Musk is a powerful man. I mean, he's very rich, right?

There's always speculation that Elon Musk and Donald Trump might fall out down the line, but a close ally of the president-elect. And of course, the US president is the most powerful man in the world. So I think politicians are trying to figure out how to respond to the things that Elon Musk is saying. And there's this diplomatic dance as well, because if him and Donald Trump fall,

to remain close. Elon Musk is going to be one of the people heading up this Department of Government Efficiency, as it's been labelled in the US. How do you handle that relationship with Elon Musk if you also want to have a relationship with the US, incoming US president as well? I think there's lots of tangles in there because, as I say, you'll have to see how the Trump-Musk relationship evolves as well. But this is not a

simple matter, I think, that politicians are trying to juggle as they move forward. And as the case of Nigel Farage shows as well, Elon Musk, he might like somebody, but he might also change his mind. Yeah, we'll just have to wait and see. We've got a whole year's worth of tweets to come. Thanks, Jess. My pleasure.

But Musk hasn't only focused on European politics. He's also taken an interest in other parts of the world. Maria Clara Montoya from the What's in the World team has more. Latin America is no stranger to Elon Musk's political musings. And like in Europe, Musk isn't afraid to get on the wrong side of the continent's political leaders.

In 2024, Brazil's Supreme Court blocked X temporarily after it refused to ban multiple accounts accused of spreading misinformation about the 2022 presidential election and after failing to appoint a new legal representative.

Brazil is said to be one of the largest markets for eggs and the ban went on for over a month between September and October. That ban was lifted after eggs complied to follow the Supreme Court's requirements and settled fines for over $5 million. In Venezuela, President Nicolás Maduro blocked access to eggs for 10 days in August after having a public fallout with Elon Musk. This happened in the midst of the disputed presidential election a month earlier.

Lots of people turn to X and other social media platforms to show their discontent with the results.

Elon Musk has a good relationship with other Latin American leaders. He's met with El Salvador's Nayib Bukele and both share a passion for AI and Bitcoin. Also in the good books? Argentina's president, Javier Millay. They have met a few times, discussed business ideas and shared selfies and compliments on their social media profiles. Musk has praised Millay's politics and has said that Argentina is experiencing a giant improvement.

These two leaders, who are both seen as unconventional, are keen on having more investments from Musk's companies and their relationship seems to be flourishing. So with Elon Musk showing no signs of logging out of X anytime soon, it's left many wondering which politician will be next.

While he's been criticized by some, his close relationships with Donald Trump and the leaders of Argentina and Italy show that he does have some friends on the world stage. If you want to know more on Elon Musk, we did an episode right after Donald Trump won the U.S. election explaining who he is and what role he's going to play in the next administration.

You can listen to that wherever you get your BBC podcasts. Thank you for listening to today's episode of What's in the World from the BBC World Service. I'm Itkra Farooq and I'll be back with another episode soon. See you then. Bye. Yoga is more than just exercise. It's the spiritual practice that millions swear by.

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