Did Elon Musk Buy CNN? Breaking Down the Billionaire’s Alleged Media Takeover Deal

Social media has a way of taking speculation and rumors and twisting them into breaking news. One rumor that continues to pop up all over social media stemmed from a question: Did Elon Musk buy CNN?

The question quickly turned into more of a statement as some started to claim the billionaire was plotting a network takeover. Given Elon’s history of high-profile acquisitions, it was easy for people to believe.

Elon has been known to toy with the media. After buying Twitter (now X), he turned the verification system into a pay-to-play model and publicly debated whether journalists were even necessary. Would he take that one step further and buy CNN? Let’s dive into this chaotic rumor and separate fact from fiction.

First things first — No, Elon did not buy CNN. According to Reuters, the rumor likely started the way most modern-day misinformation does, with a mix of wishful thinking, satire, and someone on social media who said it with just enough confidence to make people believe it.

In fact, the rumor was traced back to a social media post claiming Elon signed a $3 billion deal for CNN. The social media post was picked up by a few satirical news websites that published articles with similar claims in their headlines. The combination of the social media post and the articles resulted in videos popping up on YouTube and TikTok claiming the same. Unfortunately, this resulted in a lot of people believing the rumor to be true.

According to Snopes, the rumor gained even more traction when Argentina’s President, Javier Milei, made a bold claim about Elon’s supposed CNN takeover. During an interview, President Milei stated that he believed Elon had already purchased the network.

Given President Milei’s reputation for embracing controversial and unconventional opinions, his statement only fueled the rumor. While there was no evidence to support his assertion, the fact that a sitting world leader was spreading the rumor added a new layer of legitimacy — at least in the eyes of those who wanted to believe it.

Now, Elon’s history with the media has been a bit complicated. He has frequently called out journalists for biased reporting. His social media activity suggests he enjoys poking the media bear whenever possible. However, CNN is a far cry from the type of companies Elon typically invests in. His acquisitions — Tesla, SpaceX, Neuralink, and X — are focused on technology, innovation, and artificial intelligence.

In reality, purchasing a legacy media outlet like CNN would be wildly out of character for Elon. Traditional news organizations operate under strict regulatory frameworks, journalistic ethics, and a desperate need for stable ad revenue. None of these align with Elon’s preferred style of operation.

Additionally, CNN is owned by Warner Bros. Discovery, a massive media conglomerate that is unlikely to let go of one of its most well-known properties. Even if Elon wanted to buy it, the price tag alone would be a deterrent. Per The New York Post bankers estimated CNN could fetch as much as $6 billion in 2023.

The estimated value likely increased when CNN released its monthly subscription plan.

Despite these realities, the rumor that Elon bought CNN continues to pop up. It’s a testament to how much people expect the unexpected from Elon. His past business decisions, such as selling flamethrowers for fun, launching a Tesla into space, and naming his child something that looks like a CAPTCHA test, have set a precedent that nothing is off the table.

While Elon has not purchased CNN and probably never will, it isn’t surprising that people were so quick to believe the rumor. For now, CNN remains in the hands of Warner Bros. Discovery.