Tesla Stockholders Ask Judge to Silence Musk in Fraud Case
SnopesSep 09, 2022
Tesla Shareholders Ask Judge to Silence Musk
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The Facts
Tesla shareholders have asked a judge to prevent CEO Elon Musk from talking about his 2018 tweets until after their lawsuit is heard in May. They claim he's attempting to influence potential jurors.
The lawsuit stems from tweets issued by Musk asserting that he had secured funding to take Tesla private at $420 per share, an act the plaintiffs contend manipulated the company's stock price and cost them money.
The Spin
Narrative A
Musk is crazy … crazy like a fox. When he knew he needed to give Tesla stock a boost, he tweeted about taking the company private. True or false, Musk kept Tesla out of bankruptcy and eventually it turned a profit, and all it cost Musk was a settlement with the SEC. What a great example of American industriousness in the face of government overreach.
Narrative B
Musk's flippant attitudes toward financial regulations and his theories on unlimited free speech are dangerous, if not criminal. He must be held to account for his actions to prove that billionaires can't just do what they want and get away with it.
