Trump campaign linked to X for banning hacked materials

Last month, Donald Trump’s campaign negotiated with Elon Musk’s X platform over the distribution of hacked campaign materials, before X blocked links to the content and banned the independent journalist who published it. The engagement was confirmed by a source familiar with the situation.

The hacked materials, published by journalist Ken Klippenstein, reportedly came from an Iran-backed hacking operation. The dossier included internal communications from a senior Trump campaign official as well as hacked campaign materials about Senator JD Vance, who had been selected as Trump’s vice presidential running mate. Notably, the leaked documents also revealed personal information, such as Vance’s home address and part of his Social Security number.

Klippenstein’s Substack post containing the leaked information was linked to his X account. Shortly after, his X account was suspended for allegedly violating the platform’s rules on sharing private information. Although a spokesman for

According to the source, the Trump campaign’s conversation with X officials about the hacked content occurred before Klippenstein’s ban and subsequent blocking of links to his Substack newsletter. The source also claimed that the campaign did not specifically request the removal of these links, suggesting that X made the decision independently. A spokesman for X had no further comment.

The New York Times reported on this engagement between Trump’s campaign and X as part of a larger account of Musk’s efforts to help Trump’s re-election campaign. While Meta, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, prevented users from sharing the same content, they allowed Klippenstein’s accounts to remain active. A Meta spokesperson said their policies do not allow sharing content obtained through hacking or foreign operations to influence U.S. elections.

The dossier was not just reserved for Klippenstein. Several news outlets, including Politico, The New York Times and The Washington Post, reported receiving offers for similar hacked materials but chose not to publish them, recognizing they were likely obtained through illegal means.

His actions contrast with previous controversies in which he criticized Twitter’s decision to suppress a 2020 New York Post article about Hunter Biden. Musk had released so-called “Twitter files” claiming that the government was pressuring the platform to censor Hunter Biden’s story, a claim that was later refuted by legal statements from Twitter.

Musk’s support for Trump goes beyond his platform. As CNN reported, Musk used X to promote Trump’s candidacy to over 200 million followers. He has also contributed significant funds to a pro-Trump super PAC. Recently, Musk appeared alongside Trump at a rally in Pennsylvania, emphasizing his open support for the former president and raising questions about the neutrality of his platform.