What’s wrong with Elon Musk? From the red Tesla in space to the Twitter fiasco

More than a month ago, Elon Musk caused an earthquake by announcing the purchase of Twitter for a multimillion dollar sum and the debate about the future of the social network escalated, with shares of American companies tycoon, of South African origin.

Everything shining So for this dynamic 50-year-old entrepreneur, CEO of Tesla and Space X, innovative entrepreneur, and the richest man in the world. But only a few weeks later he began to suffer some kind of curse: within a few days he made controversial moves and suffered a series of blows that damaged his reputation and his wealth, which wasHe lost more than 10,000 million dollars a day.

Buying more than 44,000 million dollars of Twitter is complicated. Musk said the deal cannot move forward until he has proof that less than 5% of 229 million daily users they are false. This can reverse the operation.

A “lying” stewardess

But it wasn’t just a matter of business: last week he suffered another blow on a personal level that immediately had an impact on his finances.

According to Business Insider, a flight attendant who worked in SpaceX’s corporate jet fleet accused Musk of showing him his erect penis, rubbing his leg without his permission, and offering to buy him. a horse in exchange for an erotic massage throughout the flight.

According to the media, Space X would have paid $ 250,000 to the stewardess in 2018, two years after the fact, to dismiss a lawsuit and “buy” the complainant’s silence. The news would have spread through the stewardess’s friend, who presented evidence of what had happened.

Space X did not comment. Musk denied the charges and attributed them to the political impact of his aggressive takeover of the social network Twitter a few weeks ago.

In fact, he sent a challenging tweet to the flight attendant: “I have a challenge with this liar who says his friend saw me ‘exposed’: to describe just one thing, anything (scars, tattoos …) that the public doesn’t know. He can’t do it., because it didn’t happen “said Musk.

But the scandal had an immediate effect. The luck of the richest man in the world reached 212,000 million dollars, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index. But after hearing the news about the flight attendant’s complaints, his wealth it fell to approximately $ 201 billion.

Tesla stock fell 6.4% that same day. Musk is likely to see its net worth dwindle further as Tesla constantly hit by bad news.

A few days ago a new documentary was released, “Elon Musk’s Crash Course” (Elon Musk’s Collision Course), where the tycoon’s response to car accidents which was allegedly caused by autopilot malfunctions in Tesla vehicles.

Elon, aggressive

Since launching his offer on Twitter, Musk has become more talkative and aggressive on social networks. with style similar to Donald Trumpattacked rival companies, suggests that coke contains cocaine and dive into politics.

He said he would no longer support the Democratic Party because it was “the party of hate and division” and that now I will vote for the republic. He warned that it would suffer “political attacks that will increase sharply in the coming months.”

“Elon Musk certainly is is in trouble because of the difficulties that have arisen in recent days, ”he said Clarion Emily Lynell Edwards, Professor of Digital Humanities at St. Francis College in New York.

The expert noted that “much of Musk’s success with Tesla and SpaceX was driven by the commitment of your vision rather than visible results. The increasingly bleak state of the US stock market is certain aggravates Musk’s ability to diversify and overcome your current challenges.

Unlike other cases of controversy for Musk, I see this period has a negative long -term effect not only in his reputation, but also in his ability to lead Tesla and SpaceX as a visionary and CEO.

Edwards believes that “although allegations of sexual harassment are well documented and they are seriousIn the current US political climate, I don’t think this incident will affect Musk’s long -term reputation or business success. “

However, he warns that “what is most deadly to Musk today is his disorganized attempt to get Twitterwhich further puts Tesla stock at risk, as it promises some of it as collateral. ”

Musk essentially placed himself and his largest business empire in this position through his own actions. is this it unlucky offer to buy Twitter can be completely destructive, especially as U.S. market conditions typically worsen. ”

The man and the businessman

Said Ari Lightman, professor of Digital Media and Marketing at Carnegie Mellon University Clarion who believed that Musk was a case in point similar to other public figures where people separate what they say from what they do.

“For example, writer JK Rowling has made some controversial statements about gender and gender, but there are still many fans of his work, even those who disagree and are even hurt by his statement. The same thing happens with Musk, he’s done controversial things, but people separate the man from the businessman”.

This expert believes that Musk’s political exposure will “not necessarily affect his image as a brilliant technical innovator or entrepreneur. Instead, your company’s commitment to user privacy, environmental sustainability, and corporate social responsibility will it will be a bigger factor in how people see the brand. “

Edwards, however, warns that “as Musk has gone through various controversies over the years, so much accumulation of issues in this short period of time and what promises to be a longer and more chaotic deal to get Twitter, marks a possible decline in Musk’s image and his ability to lead Tesla and SpaceX as the sole voice of their companies. “

But don’t think it’s dark time a deadly blow for the entrepreneur. “Even though Musk’s image remains tainted, it is not right to think that he is marginalized in any way. He is the richest man in the world. His wealth will continue to give him incredible power even if public opinion turns away from him for a while. “

Washington, correspondent

ap