Elon Musk faced allegations of censorship amid escalating H1B migrant debate

Elon Musk is facing accusations of censorship following claims that his X social media platform removed premium features from accounts that criticized his position in the ongoing debate on immigration visas.

This week, several notable conservative accounts have voiced their complaints after having their blue verification badge rescinded, leading to a loss of privileges such as the ability to monetize their content.

The account ConservativeOG reported that over 50 users were impacted by what is believed to be censorship by Musk, who typically emphasizes his support for freedom of speech.

It comes after the South Africa-born Tesla boss and incoming White House official voiced support for H-1B visas, which allow highly-skilled foreigners to work in the US for six years, rather than prioritizing American employees. 

Musk this week even threatened to ‘go to war’ with MAGA republicans after he defended the visas, and Donald Trump shocked faithful followers by siding with the SpaceX founder on the hot-button topic. 

Now, Musk appears to have stepped it up a notch by revoking privileges from X users who disagreed with his views, according to several prominent conservative accounts. 

‘With Elon’s shift on H-1B visas, we now would like answers for losing our gold checkmark. Cooler heads must prevail to restore badges for our 50+ affiliates. Right or wrong, this platform claims to champion free speech—so let’s see it in action,’ ConservativeOG wrote on X. 

‘We pay 1K a month for a “free speech platform,” we want that!’

Elon Musk has been accused of censorship after his X social media platform allegedly removed premium features from accounts which criticized his stance in the fierce ongoing debate about immigration visas

Trump with hard right influencer Laura Loomer

Conservative pundit Laura Loomer also weighed in. 

‘Why are X users who pay for @premium having their posts listed as “probable spam” on my posts @elonmusk? This is censorship. I understand you don’t like me, but this is nothing but retaliatory censorship?’ she wrote on X.    

The accounts were still active on Sunday. Some conservatives said the move was a betrayal of Musk’s pledges to make X a free speech haven when he bought the app, which was then called Twitter, in 2022. 

Musk, who immigrated to the US from South Africa and became a citizen in 2002, did not respond to requests for comment, but he posted about the X algorithm on Thursday night.    

‘Just a reminder that the algorithm is trying to maximize unregretted user-seconds,’ Musk wrote. 

‘If far more credible, verified subscriber accounts (not bots) mute/block your account compared to those who like your posts, your reach will decline significantly.’

But the post sparked further accusations that Musk has been shadow-banning his conservative critics by sabotaging their engagement with other users. 

Preston Parra, 23, the influencer who runs the ConservativeOG account, accused Musk of staging a ‘political takedown’ in retaliation for publicly disagreeing with his views on visas and immigration

‘If anyone thinks for one minute the REAL backbone of the right wing and MAGA is gonna stand idly by while these big tech gillionaire Silicon Valley dweebs who didn’t get bullied enough in high school, steal our country, they’re mistaken,’ Parra told NBC News in a text message. 

Parra said he believes Musk to be a ‘Trojan horse’ in the Trump camp. Several accounts have also referred to Musk as ‘the monarch’, suggesting he has absolute control over the website. 

Musk this week even threatened to ‘go to war’ with MAGA republicans after he defended the visas, and Donald Trump shocked faithful followers by siding with the SpaceX founder on the hot-button topic

Musk, who immigrated to the US from South Africa and became a citizen in 2002, did not respond to requests for comment, but he posted about the X algorithm on Thursday night

On Saturday, the president-elect praised the use of visas to bring skilled foreign workers to the U.S.

‘I´ve always liked the visas, I have always been in favor of the visas. That´s why we have them,’ Trump told the New York Post.

In fact, Trump has in the past criticized the H-1B visas, calling them ‘very bad’ and ‘unfair’ for U.S. workers. 

During his first term as president, Trump unveiled a ‘Hire American’ policy that directed changes to the program to try to ensure the visas were awarded to the highest-paid or most-skilled applicants.

Despite his criticism of them and attempts to curb their use, he has also used the visas at his businesses in the past, something he acknowledged in his interview Saturday.

‘I have many H-1B visas on my properties. I´ve been a believer in H-1B. I have used it many times. It´s a great program,’ Trump told the newspaper.

He did not appear to address questions about whether he would pursue any changes to the number or use of the visas once he takes office Jan. 20.

On Saturday, the president-elect praised the use of visas to bring skilled foreign workers to the U.S

Trump’s hardline immigration policies, focused mostly on immigrants who are in the country illegally, were a cornerstone of his presidential campaign and a priority issue for his supporters.

But in recent days, his coalition has split in a public debate largely taking place online about the tech industry’s hiring of foreign workers. 

Hard-right members of Trump’s movement have accused Musk and others in Trump’s new flank of tech-world supporters of pushing policies at odds with Trump’s ‘America First’ vision.

Software engineers and others in the tech industry have used H-1B visas for skilled foreign workers and say they are a critical tool for hard-to-fill positions. 

But critics have said they undercut U.S. citizens who could take those jobs. Some on the right have called for the program to be eliminated.