Elon Musk reinstates far-right commentator Nick Fuentes on X

Billionaire and X owner Elon Musk announced Thursday that Nick Fuentes, a far-right political commentator, will reinstate his account on the social media platform.

The reinstatement of Fuentes’ X account comes nearly three years after it was suspended in July 2021, with his account briefly reinstated in January 2023 before being suspended a day later.

“Fine, he will be reinstated, provided he doesn’t break the law, and let the comments and community notes crush him,” Musk wrote on refuted than to let it simmer in the darkness.”

Musk’s comment comes as many have labeled Fuentes anti-Semitic for his views on the Jewish community, including his denial of parts of the Holocaust. The Federal Bureau of Investigation also labeled Fuentes a white supremacist in a court document.

The commentator, who has been a strong supporter of former President Donald Trump, had dinner with the former president and rapper Kanye West in November 2022, sparking controversy due to how West himself had made several anti-Semitic statements. Trump stated after the dinner that he did not know who Fuentes was, a statement that Fuentes confirmed.

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Many controversial people and commentators have had their accounts reinstated on X since Musk bought the platform, as Musk has emphasized the importance of freedom of expression. Among the controversial people having their accounts reinstated is Alex Jones, a political commentator who once claimed the 2012 Sandy Hook school shooting was a hoax.

Similarly, X also restored the account of social media influencer Andrew Tate under Musk’s direction. Tate had his account suspended in 2017 after claiming in a discussion about Harvey Weinstein that women “bear some responsibility” for sexual abuse.