In what may go down as one of the most dramatic media shake-ups of the year, ABC has reportedly lost almost 1 million subscribers overnight. The reason? One tweet from tech mogul Elon Musk, who, after witnessing what he described as “blatant bias” during ABC’s recent presidential debate coverage, called for a full-blown boycott of the network. As with most things involving Musk, the fallout was swift, chaotic, and absolutely meme-worthy.
The Twitter/X tycoon’s simple but potent call to arms came after the highly
anticipated Trump vs. Harris debate, moderated by ABC’s David Muir and
Linsey Davis. While presidential debates are always hotbeds of contention, this
one hit a new level of absurdity, with Musk’s ire specifically aimed at what he
saw as the moderators’ heavy-handed fact-checking of Donald Trump.
According to Musk and his followers, Harris received much lighter treatment
during the debate, prompting Musk to jump in and declare ABC unwatchable.
“ABC is worse than your Wi-Fi during a Zoom call,” Musk tweeted late into the night. “Boycott them. Let’s show them who really runs the show.”
response, the damage was already done. Musk had weaponized his Twitter/X
platform with laser-like precision, and ABC’s subscriber base was shrinking
faster than a black hole.
canceling his service. “It’s about the media thinking they can tell us what to
think. If Elon Musk says they’ve gone too far, I believe him.”
ABC remains to be seen, but early indications suggest that the boycott may
have staying power. Musk’s fans, after all, are nothing if not fiercely loyal, and
once they decide to stand by their tech overlord, they don’t easily back down.
Naturally, the next question on everyone’s mind is, “What’s next for Musk?”
After singlehandedly derailing ABC’s subscriber base, many are speculating that
Musk might take this opportunity to e..pand his empire beyond social media,
cars, and space exploration.
for Musk to launch his own television network. “Forget ABC. We need X
TV-where free speech actually means something!” one supporter tweeted.
Could Musk actually launch a television network dedicated to unfiltered debate
and free speech, free from the “biased” fact-checkers of mainstream media
While the idea may sound absurd, Musk’s track record suggests that he thrives
on taking bold, unconventional risks-and making them work.
started with electric cars when everyone told him it couldn’t be done, then he
launched rockets to Mars, and now he’s making waves in social media. Why
wouldn’t the next logical step be to take over mainstream media?
“We’ll see,” Musk teased in a tweet when asked about his future media
ambitions. “ABC is just the beginning.”
Supporters praised him for “sticking it to the biased media,” while critics
accused him of using his influence to suppress free speech by encouraging a
boycott of a network trying to hold candidates accountable.
