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Elon Musk publicly criticized X’s Community Notes system for contradicting claims that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky is widely unpopular and afraid to hold elections.
In a post on Tuesday, Musk accused Community Notes—the fact checking feature he added to his platform—of being “gamed by governments & legacy media.” The accusation came after a note challenged the assertion that Zelensky’s approval rating was just 4%, citing independent polling that showed significantly higher support. Musk went on to claim that Zelensky had “seized control of ALL Ukrainian media” and was refusing to hold elections because he knew he would lose “in a landslide.”
His remarks sparked an immediate wave of criticism, with many users accusing him of attempting to manipulate X’s fact-checking system to align with his personal views.
“The entire point of Community Notes is that it’s independent,” journalist Shayan Sardarizadeh responded. “If you start tampering with the system because you personally dislike some notes, then how could users continue to trust it?”
Others pointed out that wartime elections are often postponed for security reasons and that comparing Ukraine’s situation to historical precedents, such as Franklin D. Roosevelt’s extended presidency during World War II, was more accurate than Musk’s claim of a “graft machine” feeding off war.
Previously, Musk has celebrated Community Notes, as have others, including META CEO Mark Zuckerberg, who recently revised the company’s fact-checking program to emulate it. “Community Notes slays,” Musk wrote in December after X users added a Community Note to an old tweet from then-President Joe Biden.
“Musk seems to only support fact-checking when it agrees with him,” one user wrote. “You can’t stand the truth.”
Originally published by Latin Times.
