Elon Musk owned social media platform X has accepted a $10 million settlement of a lawsuit brought by US President Donald Trump, the Wall Street Journal reported. This will be the second settlement between Trump and a social media company related to the suspension of his accounts following the January 2021 attack on the US Capitol.
In another case, Meta Platforms also made a settlement deal with Trump and agreed to pay around $25 million last month. Trump in July 2021 had filed lawsuits against major tech companies like X (formerly Twitter), Google’s parent company Alphabet and Facebook. As per his lawsuits, these platforms illegally suppressed conservative opinions by banning them from their services.
Initially, Trump’s legal team considered letting go of the case against X because of Trump’s ties to Musk, as per sources cited by the Wall Street Journal. Reports underline that Musk has donated $250 million to Trump’s campaign, cultivating a strong political connection between the two. However, despite this connection, Trump’s team has proceeded with the settlement.
Musk, who also leads Tesla, has taken up an additional role as the head of the Department of Government Efficiency, which is a newly formed White House division for reducing federal bureaucracy. Meanwhile, Trump’s legal team is also following a separate settlement with Google, which had also banned Trump from YouTube in the outcome of the Capitol riot.
(With inputs from Reuters)