• iconNews
  • videos
  • entertainment
  • Home
  • News
    • UK News
    • US News
    • Australia
    • Ireland
    • World News
    • Weird News
    • Viral News
    • Sport
    • Technology
    • Science
    • True Crime
    • Travel
  • Entertainment
    • Celebrity
    • TV & Film
    • Netflix
    • Music
    • Gaming
    • TikTok
  • LAD Originals
    • Say Maaate to a Mate
    • Daily Ladness
    • Lad Files
    • UOKM8?
    • FreeToBe
    • Extinct
    • Citizen Reef
  • Advertise
  • Terms
  • Privacy & Cookies
  • LADbible Group
  • UNILAD
  • SPORTbible
  • GAMINGbible
  • Tyla
  • UNILAD Tech
  • FOODbible
  • License Our Content
  • About Us & Contact
  • Jobs
  • Latest
  • Topics A-Z
  • Authors
Facebook
Instagram
X
Threads
Snapchat
TikTok
YouTube

LAD Entertainment

YouTube

LAD Stories

Submit Your Content
Elon Musk Faces Backlash For Buying Twitter Rather Than Addressing World Hunger

Home> News

Published 22:13 26 Apr 2022 GMT+1

Elon Musk Faces Backlash For Buying Twitter Rather Than Addressing World Hunger

The Tesla CEO was told $6 billion would feed the world's most vulnerable, but he's spent seven times that amount on a social media company.

Stewart Perrie

Stewart Perrie

It seems like everyone around the world has had something to say about Elon Musk's humungous $44 billion takeover of Twitter.

Some have called it a massive win for free speech, while others fear it will make the social media site a worse-off place.

Discussions about what will happen to Twitter will likely go on for days or even weeks, however people on Twitter have pointed out a depressing reality of the huge takeover.

Karl-Josef Hildenbrand/dpa/Alamy Live News

Advert

Musk was called last year on to spend a fraction of his wealth to address world hunger.

The director of the United Nations World Food Programme revealed how just 2 per cent of the Tesla's wealth at the time could feed millions of vulnerable people around the world.

Speaking to CNN, David Beasley called on Musk and Jeff Bezos (the second richest person on the planet) to reconsider where they are putting their money.

He said: "$6 billion to help 42 million people that are literally going to die if we don't reach them. It's not complicated."

At the time, Musk hit back at the assertion and wanted to see the fine print before sending over the cash.

Advert

He wrote: "If WFP can describe on this Twitter thread exactly how $6B will solve world hunger, I will sell Tesla stock right now and do it."

He added: "But it must be open source accounting, so the public sees precisely how the money is spent."

Now that his $44 billion takeover bid has been accepted by the Twitter board, many are questioning why he was prepared to pay that enormous sum of money for a company, when he could have addressed world hunger seven times over.

When he was put under scrutiny for his claims, David Beasley admitted that $6 billion wouldn't fix world hunger in its entirety.

Advert

But he did declare it would have addressed the most pressing issues for some of the most vulnerable people who need food.

"$6B will not solve world hunger, but it WILL prevent geopolitical instability, mass migration and save 42 million people on the brink of starvation," Beasley said on Twitter.

He explained how a $6.6 billion investment would provide those 42 million people in need with one meal every day for a year, which is fairly impressive.

While there were plenty of people who criticised Musk for spending tens of billions of dollars on buying Twitter, others thought it was perfectly reasonable.

His supporters said the Tesla CEO is free to spend money in the way he sees fit.

Featured Image Credit: Trevor Cokley/Alamy. REUTERS/Babu

Topics: Elon Musk

Stewart Perrie
Stewart Perrie

Stewart Perrie is a Senior Journalist at LADbible. Stewart has covered the conflict in Syria for LADbible, interviewing a doctor on the front line, and has contributed to the hugely successful UOKM8 campaign. He is in charge of the LADbible Australia editorial content and social presence.

X

@stewartperrie

Advert

Advert

Advert

Choose your content:

12 mins ago
an hour ago
3 hours ago
  • 12 mins ago

    Man had chilling vision 10 days in a row before plane crash that saw 273 people killed

    Despite multiple calls to the company, nothing could be done

    News
  • an hour ago

    Heroic coast guard who saved nearly 200 children from camp in fatal Texas floods details rescue effort

    He called the kids the true heroes

    News
  • an hour ago

    Newlywed dies on honeymoon after being hit by lightning bolt while stood in sea during freak incident

    The incident happened at a picturesque Florida beach

    News
  • 3 hours ago

    What happens when you stop masturbating as doctor gives surprising answer to how often you should do it

    The more you know

    News
  • Elon Musk forms his 'own political party' after fallout with Trump
  • Elon Musk hit back at hacking group Anonymous after they issued warning about his plans for Twitter
  • Why Elon Musk and Grimes were forced to change name of their child after less than a month
  • Messages Elon Musk allegedly sent to baby mama Ashley St Clair as he made bizarre demands for birth of baby