Elon Musk Trades Barbs With The Economist Editor in Exclusive Interview: 'Many People Hate You' – 'Even More Don't Like You'

The video of Elon Musk’s exclusive interview with *The Economist* was released on July 23. In the video, *The Economist* editor Beddoes accused Musk of being out of touch, misusing his influence to spread false panic and far-right rhetoric about Europe. “You described to me those astonishing, civilization-altering events of extraordinary transformative significance that will unfold over the next decade. Yet you remain a constant participant in the worst cesspool of tribalism that is social media,” Beddoes said. In response to Beddoes’ sharp criticism, Musk replied: “My partner, Shivon Zilis, a senior executive at Neuralink, is half-Indian. I have four children with her, one of whom is named after a famous Indian physicist. So I don’t think I’m a racist. And if you look at the employees in my companies, you’ll find our executives are from all races. I don’t believe there is any racial discrimination there.” During the interview, Musk told Beddoes outright that the absurd labeling of “far-right” by media outlets like *The Economist* is false and misleading. Beddoes countered that Musk had claimed “a civil war in the UK is only a matter of time,” but that was not the case: “The UK’s domestic security is better than that of any city in the US.” Finally, Beddoes bluntly criticized Musk: “You are out of touch, and many people dislike you.” To that, Musk said: “I don’t care. I have 250 million followers, and I believe far more people like me than dislike me. Moreover, I think far more people dislike you and the media than you imagine.”