WASHINGTON: Elon Musk, newly crowned the world&#39;s first trillionaire, faced renewed criticism Friday over anti-immigrant riots in Belfast after researchers said violent narratives he amplified on his platform X amassed millions of views. Clashes broke out in the Northern Irish capital after a brutal knife attack on Monday, with police charging a Sudanese national named Hadi Alodid with attempted murder. Musk amplified calls for protest across Britain from anti-immigration activist Tommy Robinson and wrote to his 240 million followers on X: &quot;Only by protesting REPEATEDLY and LOUDLY will there be any change.&quot; He also boosted anti-immigration posts and messages from Rupert Lowe, leader of the fringe hard-right party Restore Britain, extending his reach to millions of users on the platform. Researchers from the nonprofit tech watchdog Center for Countering Digital Hate (CCDH) reported that the trio&#39;s posts about Belfast collectively garnered more than 115 million views across their accounts, with Musk accounting for 55 percent of the total. &quot;Musk&#39;s amplification has been instrumental,&quot; contributing 64 million views, CCDH said in a report. &quot;As the owner of X and its most followed user, Musk has unparalleled power to shape what people see online. With that power comes responsibility for the content and conduct his platform promotes,&quot; said Imran Ahmed, CCDH&#39;s founder and chief executive. &quot;Yet our research shows that he used the Belfast tragedy to amplify anti-migrant narratives to millions of users, prompting endless calls for violence. &quot;While communities dealt with the consequences of brutality and disorder, no individual played a bigger role in spreading this content on X than Musk himself,&quot; Ahmed added. X did not immediately respond to AFP&#39;s request for comment. Robinson -- whose real name is Stephen Yaxley-Lennon -- was formerly banned from X. His account was reinstated -- along with several other influencers accused of peddling misinformation or hate speech -- following Musk&#39;s 2022 acquisition of the platform, previously known as Twitter. Researchers say that Musk has also expanded Lowe&#39;s reach by amplifying his speeches in recent weeks and posting that only his party can &quot;save Britain.&quot; CCDH said it identified an &quot;explosion in calls for violence&quot; in the responses to the trio&#39;s posts about the Belfast unrest, with more than 3,900 comments advocating lynchings and other crimes against immigrants. Two-thirds of the calls for violence appeared in replies to Robinson&#39;s posts, it added. The research comes after Britain&#39;s media watchdog Ofcom warned of the increased risk of online platforms being used to &quot;stir up hatred, provoke violence and commit other offences under UK law.&quot; The findings coincided with a milestone for Musk, who became the world&#39;s first trillionaire on Friday after shares of his other company, SpaceX, soared following its Wall Street trading debut. The blockbuster initial public offering, the biggest in history, raised more than $75 billion.

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Elon Musk faces criticism over posts linked to anti-immigrant unrest in Belfast, as researchers say content he amplified on X generated millions of views and fueled calls for violence online.

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Newly minted trillionaire Musk under fire over Belfast riots

Newly minted trillionaire Musk under fire over Belfast riots