RFK Jr – live: Musk reveals Twitter revenue down by half as he hosts anti-vax 2024 White House hopeful

Robert F Kennedy Jr has long-held, and promoted, anti-vaccine beliefs

Robert F Kennedy Jr launches 2024 campaign

Democrat presidential candidate and notable anti-vaccine advocate Robert F Kennedy Jr joined Elon Musk and David Sacks on Twitter Spaces on Monday 5 June to discuss the former’s bid for the White House.

Mr Kennedy was also  joined by Tulsi Gabbard, Balaji Srinivasan, Omeed Malik, Michael Shellenberger and Kelly Slater at the event.

The Twitter Spaces event comes just weeks after Mr Musk and Mr Sacks hosted and moderated a similar audio listening event with presidential candidate Ron DeSantis, where he launched his own campaign.

Notably, the Spaces session was filled with technological glitches, which Mr Sacks attributed to a high volume of listeners.

Following the event, Mr Musk welcomed all candidates onto Twitter and said he would be open to hosting other candidates on Twitter Spaces.

But some were unhappy with Mr Musk’s decision to host Mr Kennedy as he has been previously banned from social platforms for spreading misinformation.

Key Points

• Elon Musk hosts Twitter Spaces with Robert F Kennedy Jr
• Jack Dorsey endorses Robert F Kennedy Jr for president
• Elon Musk criticised for hosting RFK Jr
• RFK Jr calls traditional media organisations “propaganda vessels”
• Twitter users mock RFK Jr and Elon Musk’s ‘love fest’ Spaces event

[5 June 2023 21:20 · Ariana Baio]

On gun control, RFK Jr says he will ‘take away anybody’s guns’

Robert F Kennedy Jr said his position on gun control is that he is “not going to take away anybody’s guns” and pointed his finger at psychiatric drugs as a possible cause of school shootings.

Mr Kennedy said taking away people’s guns was “not the right thing” when it comes to decreasing the number of school shootings and gun violence.

The 2024 presidential candidate said he understands firsthand the heartbreak many Americans experience from gun violence because his father and uncle both died due to guns.

However, he believes taking away guns will polarise the country further.

Instead, Mr Kennedy said the US should look into the use of psychiatric drugs in young people and their contribution to school shootings.

Mr Kennedy said if he is president he will “look closely” into the role of psychiatric drugs in those events.

[5 June 2023 22:00 · Ariana Baio]

RFK Jr says Instagram misinformation ban had nothing to do with ‘factual accuracy'

During his two-hour-long Twitter Spaces chat, Mr Kennedy told people that his ban from Instagram had “nothing to do with... factual accuracy” despite him circulating misinformation about Covid-19 and vaccines.

[5 June 2023 23:00 · Ariana Baio]

RFK Jr heaps praise on Elon Musk saying he is ‘rescuing American Democracy’ during Twitter event

Presidential candidate and anti-vaccine conspiracy theorist Robert F Kennedy Jr heaped praise on Twitter owner Elon Musk for defending free speech, during a Twitter spaces event with the executive on Monday afternoon.

Mr Kennedy, who has long promoted the discredited theory that vaccines play a role in causing autism, participated in a Twitter Spaces event on Monday and praised Mr Muk for his stewardship of the social media giant for supposedly stopping censorship of voices that dissent from orthodoxy.

“I just want to tell you how much I admire you for that and how grateful I am on behalf of my country,” he said. “You would come here from another country and be a key instrument for rescuing American democracy and freedom of speech.”

Eric Garcia reports:

[5 June 2023 23:41 · Graeme Massie]

Elon Musk promotes transphobic content as hate speech surges on his far-right platform

Twitter’s CEO pledges to lobby against gender-affirming care and wants to imprison doctors, as LGBT+ advocates and watchdog groups warn the platform is opening a door for abuse, Alex Woodward reports.

[6 June 2023 00:00 · Ariana Baio]

RFK Jr Twitter Spaces ends after two hours

After two hours of talking about his political positions and views, Robert F Kennedy Jr’s Twitter Space with Elon Musk ended around 4.30pm EST on Monday, 5 June.

Throughout his long chat with Mr Musk, David Sacks and others, Mr Kennedy went on several tangents some where he praised Mr Musk others where he shared conspiracy theories about Covid-19 and the pharmaceutical industry.

At one point, Mr Kennedy’s wife, Cheryl Hines, jumped into the conversation to express hesitant support for her husband’s campaign run.

[6 June 2023 00:32 · Graeme Massie]

Musk’s strategy is becoming clearer: Flood the zone with BS

Musk knows we can’t look away from his side show. So he’s using it to throw as much misinformation as possible out there, writes Eric Garcia.

[6 June 2023 01:00 · Ariana Baio]

RFK Jr: “I don’t ever need to talk about vaccines again”

[6 June 2023 02:00 · Ariana Baio]

Cheryl Hines says her husband's campaign is ‘at times, exciting’

Cheryl Hines, the wife of Robert F Kennedy Jr, joined his Twitter Space on Monday (5 June) to express her hesitant support for her husband.

Ms Hines, 57, was unexpectedly asked to contribute to the conversation by David Sacks and asked to comment on her husband’s campaign.

“It’s been really interesting and at times exciting,” Ms Hines said laughing. “I know there will be challenges that I hope I’m — I know I’ll be strong enough– to face.”

“We’ll get through them,” Ms Hines said.

She described her husband as being “in his element” and said she feels confident he is meant to do this.

[6 June 2023 03:00 · Ariana Baio]

Robert F Kennedy Jr snubbed by his own family at 2024 presidential campaign launch

Anti-vaccine activist and conspiracy theorist Robert F Kennedy Jr has officially declared himself to be a candidate in next year’s Democratic presidential primary, ending a four-decade stretch of presidential elections without a member of his famous family on the ballot.

Andrew Feinberg reports:

[6 June 2023 04:00 · Ariana Baio]

Jack Dorsey endorses Robert F Kennedy Jr for president

Jack Dorsey, the co-founder and former CEO of Twitter, has seemingly endorsed Robert F Kennedy Jr for president in a tweet.

Mr Dorsey shared a YouTube link to a Fox News interview of John F Kennedy’s 69-year-old nephew on Sunday, titled “Robert F Kennedy Jr argues he can beat Trump and DeSantis in 2024”.

Mr Dorsey quote tweeted the link. “He can and will,” Mr Dorsey wrote.