Billionaire Elon Musk was bluntly fact-checked after sharing a fake article claiming diversity aims to "get rid of white people," his latest attack against diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives.
Musk insisted he condemns "racism of any kind" while sharing screenshots from an article claiming that "getting rid of white people" is a "good thing"—except that the article was written by a notorious troll to spark outrage.
Musk made the comment on Saturday in response to a fake article—falsely attributed to ProPublica reporter Emily Goldstein—titled “yes, diversity is about getting rid of white people (and that’s a good thing).” The article claimed the author was “extremely glad that the white race is dying” and that “white people do not have a right to exist.”
The real source behind the post was an online troll named Joshua Goldberg from Florida, who in 2019 admitted to running 27 different Reddit accounts, as well as writing the fake article.
Later that month, Goldberg told a confidential FBI source that he had identified the “perfect place” for an attack—a Kansas City firefighters’ event on September 13, 2015, memorializing those who died in the 9/11 terror attacks. He pled guilty to “attempted malicious damage and destruction by an explosive of a building” in December 2017 and was sentenced to 10 years in prison, followed by a lifetime of “supervised release.”
The U.S. Office of Public Affairs said that Goldberg mentioned in August 2015 that he was “thinking of pipe bombs at a large public event” and later suggested that “a pressure cooker bomb may be better.”
Ironically, in sharing the piece, Musk remarked:
"Racism in any form is abhorrent and those who push it should be shunned."
However, ProPublica issued a statement denouncing the “hateful disinformation” and clarifying that Goldstein “has never been employed by or contributed work to Thought Catalog,” an online blog.
Additionally, Musk was fact-checked by a Community Note on his own platform that says:
"This is a troll article. The claimed author, Emily Goldstein, did not write it. Online troll Joshua Goldberg, who operated many accounts with false identities across the political spectrum, claims credit for it."
Many condemned Musk, who has yet to respond to the criticisms.
Musk was called out by entrepreneur and investor Mark Cuban earlier this year after saying that DEI efforts constitute "Discrimination on the basis of race."
Musk denounced the concept in a post to liberal activist Ed Krassenstein, asserting that discrimination based on race, a component of DEI programs, aligns with the definition of racism.
In response, Cuban highlighted the importance of comprehensive hiring strategies that consider a diverse pool of talent. Cuban emphasized the potential for businesses to thrive by seeking out individuals of varying backgrounds, beliefs, and orientations who are often overlooked in conventional hiring practices.
He also stressed that "in an era where trust of businesses can be hard to come by, people tend to connect more easily to people who are like them." He also said that "having a workforce that is diverse and representative of your stakeholders is good for business."
