Claim:
A screenshot authentically shows an X post by Elon Musk reading, “‘Weird’ is a slur being used against Trump supporters, and it will not be tolerated on this platform. Trump supporters should not have to face ridicule for their beliefs. Any harassment of Trump supporters using the term ‘Weird’ will be punished.”
Rating:
Fake ( About this rating? )
In July 2024, a post on X claimed to show a screenshot of a message authored by the platform's owner, Elon Musk, in which he said anyone on X who calls Trump supporters "weird" will face consequences.
The screenshot, shared by X users including @theliamnisson, was reposted thousands of times, as of this writing. The full alleged post by Musk stated:
"Weird" is a slur being used against Trump supporters, and it will not be tolerated on this platform. Trump supporters should not have to face ridicule for their beliefs. Any harassment of Trump supporters using the term "Weird" will be punished.
(X user @theliamnisson)
But there was no evidence of the alleged post on Musk's X account . We looked through Musk's posts on July 30, 2024, and did not find the message in question.
We also used PolitiTweet , a database of deleted tweets from Musk's account, and did not find the message there. While the database may be incomplete (in other words, it's possible that it does not contain all deleted tweets), if he had temporarily shared such a message — for instance, if he had posted and then deleted it — many news outlets would have documented it. That had not happened .
In other words, the screenshot about users using the word "weird" appeared to be a digital creation. As such, we have rated it "Fake."
The screenshot emerged after U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris and her allies made it part of her 2024 presidential campaign to criticize former President Donald Trump and his running mate as "weird".
We have debunked other fake posts shared by @theliamnisson in the past, including a screenshot supposedly showing a BBC News broadcast in which Trump called U.S. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene a "sasquatch." The X account's bio labels it "parody."
Sources:
"@elonmusk Deleted Tweets." PolitiTweet. https://polititweet.org/tweets?account=44196397&deleted=True . Accessed 31 July 2024.
Liles, Jordan. "Did Trump Call US Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene a 'Sasquatch'?" Snopes, 16 Oct. 2023, https://www.snopes.com//fact-check/trump-called-greene-sasquatch/. " target="blank">https://www.snopes.com//fact-check/trump-called-greene-sasquatch/.">https://www.snopes.com//fact-check/trump-called-greene-sasquatch/. Accessed 31 July 2024.
"Why Harris and Democrats Keep Calling Trump and Vance 'Weird.'" AP News, 30 July 2024, https://apnews.com/article/kamala-harris-trump-vance-weird-c54d506d1f533ee7aa455f7b500322c5. " target="blank">https://apnews.com/article/kamala-harris-trump-vance-weird-c54d506d1f533ee7aa455f7b500322c5.">https://apnews.com/article/kamala-harris-trump-vance-weird-c54d506d1f533ee7aa455f7b500322c5. Accessed 31 July 2024.
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