Technical Issues and Political Implications
Donald Trump, who is running for U.S. presidency again, recently gave a high-profile interview with billionaire Elon Musk on X (formerly Twitter). The live audio telecast was plagued by technical issues from the start, facing hiccups and delays. Elon Musk attributed the problems to a DDOS attack and claimed that the live stream had been tested with 8 million concurrent listeners.
The interview was delayed by over 40 minutes, preventing many users from accessing the live stream. Despite the technical difficulties, more than a million listeners tuned in when the conversation finally began. Currently, the live Spaces episode has around 1.3 million listeners.
These technical troubles were reminiscent of an event on X in May 2023, when Florida Governor Ron DeSantis faced glitches during the launch of his presidential campaign. The broadcast had sound outages and connection drops, frustrating many users. Trump, who later secured the Republican nomination over DeSantis, had mocked his rival’s struggle with X’s technical issues at the time.
This interview marked Trump's first appearance on X in a year. He used the opportunity to post multiple messages, including one reiterating his belief—without evidence—that the criminal cases against him are politically motivated. Trump's presence on X is significant as the platform was central to his communication strategy during his previous campaigns and presidency, especially before his account was suspended following the January 6, 2021, Capitol riot.
Elon Musk has become a much more visible and important supporter of Trump, despite previously backing Democratic President Joe Biden in 2020. Interestingly, Trump, who has often criticized electric vehicles, has softened his tone on the issue.