California Governor Gavin Newsom has accused tech billionaire Elon Musk of spreading "lies" about the state's response to deadly wildfires ravaging Los Angeles, escalating their online row over swirling misinformation.
President-elect Donald Trump and Musk -- the Tesla and SpaceX owner poised to play a key role advising the incoming administration –- have stepped up criticism of the governor's handling of the devastating blazes that have killed at least 24 people and displaced tens of thousands.
In a post on his social media platform X, Musk blamed the huge loss of homes in Los Angeles on "bad governance at a state and local level that resulted in a shortage of water."
"(Musk) exposed by firefighters for his own lies," Newsom posted late Sunday, alongside a video clip showing the tycoon asking a firefighter whether water availability was an issue.
The firefighter replied there was water in "several reservoirs," and added that battling large-scale fires required supplementing the effort with water trucks.
In a separate spat over the weekend, Newsom accused Musk of "encouraging looting by lying," after the billionaire amplified a post on X that falsely claimed the governor and his fellow Democrats had "decriminalized looting."
"It's illegal -- as it always has been," Newsom responded, amid concerns of a looting spree in areas where people were forced to flee the fires.
"Bad actors will be arrested and prosecuted," he added.
Musk's personal account on X, which has more than 212 million followers, has become increasingly influential and has often courted criticism for amplifying misinformation.
The platform -- previously called Twitter, which Musk purchased in 2022 for $44 billion -- has seen an explosion of right-wing misinformation about the deadly wildfires, researchers say.
Even though months of dry weather and strong winds created optimal conditions for the wildfires, narratives on X have singled out diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) policies in the Los Angeles fire force as a culprit.
"DEI means people will DIE," Musk posted over the weekend, while downplaying the impact of climate change.
One viral video debunked by the misinformation watchdog NewsGuard had falsely claimed fire department officials were desperately using women's handbags to fight the flames because their resources had been diverted to "woke causes" and war assistance to Ukraine.
But the water-filled pouches seen in the video were actually "canvas bags," carried by firefighters because they were easier to use for extinguishing small flames than having to haul out a hose, the entertainment news site TMZ cited local officials as saying.
Conspiracy theorist Alex Jones baselessly claimed on X that the fires were part of a "globalist plot to wage economic warfare and deindustrialize the United States."
"True," Musk wrote in response to Jones.
Wildfire misinformation was also swirling on other platforms including the Meta-owned Facebook.
Authorities recently warned of a false Facebook post urging people to travel to California to join a clean-up crew in areas affected by the wildfires.
"We would like to clarify that there is no such opportunity available," the state's fire protection department wrote on its website.
Meta triggered a global backlash last week after it announced it was scrapping third-party fact-checking in the United States and introducing a crowd-sourced moderation method similar to X.
Disinformation researchers have criticized Meta's policy overhaul, which came less than two weeks before Trump takes office, warning that it risked opening the floodgates for false narratives.
Facebook currently pays to use fact checks from around 80 organizations globally on the platform, as well as on WhatsApp and Instagram. AFP currently works in 26 languages with Facebook's fact-checking scheme.
© 2025 AFP
24 Comments
Geeter Mckluskie
The fire chief told a reporter that they had no water.
bass4funk
Yes, she did.
https://x.com/collinrugg/status/1877827973895893084?s=46&t=YGWP_lcRZjddiWlx4QxURQ
zulander
Is there a need to quote a "fact check" on what is clearly a joke/parody ?
Blacklabel
well see, they “have water”!
it just doesn’t come out when they turn the hydrant on, cause of reasons and stuff.
but they totally have water. But if they didn’t it also wouldn’t matter either, water is just a small tiny part of…..putting out fires.
Peter Neil
musk’s biographer say he’s “going mad,” “deeply unwell.”
https://www.thelondoneconomic.com/news/elon-musk-may-be-going-mad-biographer-claims-388041/
TorafusuTorasan
@blacklabel--the last part you wrote in jest but has some legit truth. For example, about 30 percent of the firefighting has been done by prison inmates on 24 hour shifts who are not allowed near the vehicles dispersing the water. They would only have a supply of drinking water and hand tools.
Stewart Gale
Musk is an unstable megalomaniac.
Trump and he are genuine dangers to the world.
How can anyone with any intelligence support these two?
wallace
I'm not surprised. Musk has spread hundreds of lies and fake posts in Europe. It seems to be his game these days. Maybe one man should not have so much wealth and power and a social network site for posting them.
GuruMick
Musk makes cars and now own Twitter.
Doesnt make him an expert on anything really
wallace
You don't have to be a doctor to call that one.
bass4funk
Why? So other people with wealth should have the power to silence, others people, and block their constitutional rights of freedom of speech or you think it’s OK when the power set be modifies someone’s speech in order to fit a specific ideology, or you think it’s OK to cancel someone or to block them or to ban them, what’s the difference?
OR he could on to something…
Does that apply to Soros as well or Bezos?
Blacklabel
never heard this about Twitter or Facebook or WaPo owners.
Tokyo Guy
Engaging with Musk is a waste of time. While Newsom has the right idea - countering Musk's endless barrage of propaganda and lies - Musk only does this because he is the most attention-starved man on the planet. His vast wealth means that he doesn't have to do anything he doesn't want to, and what he clearly does want to do is use his reach to provoke and try and cause division because he knows that these things get him attention. Hence he doesn't limit himself to the USA, he wades into other countries' politics and so forth.
We just have to accept that there are criminally stupid people who will unthinkingly believe everything he writes.
JJE
The mental gymnastics Gavin is deploying to insulate himself, and his national ambitions, from any blame for this fiasco is incredible. Incompetent fools.
This guy wants to take his model nationwide. Watchout.
plasticmonkey
They should put you in charge.
bass4funk
But these so-called politicians know what they’re doing?????
Seems like the truth now are seen as lies…
There is already division in that state, and it’s among the most affluent
Because he can.
Nothing criminal about having an opinion, mismanaging a State, County and City is a very different story.
Wasabi
Some are trying to put out a fire and other are only not helping they are putting gasoline on it.
In a few days President Musk will have to take care of this.
Jay
Yes wildfires a common occurrence in California but the devastation caused by this year's in particular are a RAGING testament to Newsom's incompetence and the disastrous consequences of woke, leftist, Uber "Progressive" mismanagement. Instead of implementing proper forest management and fire prevention strategies - like clearing brush, controlled burns, investing in critical infrastructure, and NOT defunding the fire departments - all of which his administration has failed to do - he has prioritized virtue signaling over actual governance.
Honestly, Newsom's environmental policies are more about appeasing eco-activists than protecting the environment or the people of California. These fires are the result of YEARS of negligence, red tape, and a refusal to listen to people. Seriously, if this SLIMY POLITICIAN spent half as much time on fire prevention as he does on hair gel...
Burgerland
"Musk is an unstable megalomaniac. Trump and he are genuine dangers to the world."
Proof being? or is it a fact just because anti Trump woke left says so?
Fighto!
No shocks there.
He's a druggie. Musk is cooked.
Stewart Gale
burgerland
You don’t have to be “woke” or “far-left” to be gravely concerned about the dangers of the likes of Musk and Trump.
Life isn’t as black and white as you might think.
By the way burgerland, define “woke” for me please. I’d love to know what you think that term means.
Seems to me this new term “woke” means a person with tolerance, respect, empathy and sympathy for others.
Why do guys like you throw the word around like it’s some kind of insult?
rainyday
His own words and actions.
Underworld
Burgerland
Musk is an unstable megalomaniac.
Exhibit A: Musk thinks that because Texas has twice the forest area as California, therefore it should have twice the fires.
Braindead.
Stewart Gale
Exhibit B - Musk writes on X that “civil war in Britain is inevitable”, further stoking up the moronic far-right.