The sense of relief that many Britons felt when Labour won the country's elections this summer did not last long. After the horrific attack on children in Southport, England, protests broke out, fueled by rumors on social media that the perpetrator was Muslim. None of this was true, German public broadcaster ARD recalls. The 17-year-old perpetrator was actually born in Britain and is a Christian whose parents are from Rwanda.
However, far-right conspiracy theories continued to spread - especially on X (formerly Twitter). Something similar is happening now in Germany after the attack on the Christmas market in Magdeburg.
Blurring reality
Elon Musk's knowledge of the political situation in both Britain and Germany is most likely limited. However, this does not matter, writes ARD. The billionaire's real goal is to undermine trust in liberal democracies, whose control systems he finds annoying. This is not difficult to achieve - the foundations of any democracy are the facts, which are now being blurred as much as possible.
A few days ago, Musk wrote on his X profile that "only "Alternative for Germany" can save" the Federal Republic. The leader of the far-right party, Alice Weidel, readily accepted the billionaire's support and even replied: "You are absolutely right!".
And while German politicians such as Alice Weidel and Christian Lindner continue to look for a field for conversation with Musk, in Britain the richest man in the world is already a few steps ahead with the implementation of his plan.
Nigel Farage - conduit for Musk's influence
Nigel Farage, the leader of the far-right party "Reform", is Musk's conduit in the United Kingdom. Farage was not only key in the Brexit decision, but has been doing everything in his power to bring Britain closer to authoritarianism ever since. For years, Farage has not missed an opportunity to present himself as Donald Trump's best friend, ARD recalls. Now he has said he expects a $100 million donation from Elon Musk for the next election campaign.
The next election is more than four years away, but Prime Minister Keir Starmer should not take this for granted, warn democratic politicians on the island. Electoral law in the UK is not very strict and many things are unclear. Donations of more than £500 to parties can only come from British companies, but this can easily be circumvented by Musk, who can, for example, use subsidiaries there. And there is no upper limit on donations.
Regulations of social networks?
Many Britons want stricter regulations on social networks, especially X. The algorithms of Musk's platform have already clearly shown that they can cause problems in the United Kingdom. But what is needed for this to happen? Albania has announced that it will block TikTok for a year because of the harm the social network causes to children's psyches. How exactly this will work is another question.
On the other hand, the British government seems to want to continue to believe that improving individual living conditions in the country will remove the prerequisites for radicalization, writes ARD. This is more convincing than any kind of ban on party donations, a Starmer official tells the "Guardian".
However, Joe Biden and the American Democrats have just experienced how successful this belief can be. His real successes in economic policy have been drowned out by the noise of general uncertainty caused by Trump and his digital fans. Biden's approach no longer works, and seems naive, summarizes ARD. Instead, democratic governments must now learn very quickly how they can defend themselves where the far more dangerous attacks against them in the 21st century are being carried out: online.