“No, I Definitely Melted It Down 1,000%,” Elon Musk Responds to Satirical Claim of Statue of Liberty Melt-Down

Elon Musk has found himself at the center of a bizarre rumor that has been circulating online, claiming he was considering melting down the Statue of Liberty to create a series of limited-edition Tesla Cybertrucks. The claim, which originated from a satirical post on Bluesky, made headlines when a user shared a screenshot that appeared to show CNN reporting on the controversial idea.

The post, allegedly written by CNN’s chief media analyst Brian Stelter, showed a headline reading, “Elon Musk Considers Melting Down Statue of Liberty to Make Series of Limited Edition Cyber Trucks.” The image accompanying the article featured the Statue of Liberty with Donald Trump’s likeness, and a caption stating, “‘Lady Liberty is French.

There’s nothing less American than that statue,’ Musk was overheard saying at a Mar-a-Lago luncheon.” However, the post was satirical, and the fact-checking site Snopes quickly debunked it. The user who shared the post, @hejintravels.bsky.social‬, commented that it was “hard to decipher satire from reality these days.”

Musk himself responded to the circulating rumor with humor. On December 11, 2024, he posted a tweet on X (formerly Twitter), stating, “No, I definitely melted it down 1,000%,” alongside a screenshot of a Reuters fact check debunking the claim. The Reuters headline read, “Fact Check: CNN headline about Musk melting down the Statue of Liberty is fake.”

CNN spokesperson Emily Kuhn confirmed to Reuters on December 3 that the screenshot was fabricated and that “CNN never reported or published that story.” The earliest known version of the altered screenshot appeared on the Reddit page r/PoliticalHumor on November 30, where the user Scorpini_83 shared it with the caption, “This ain’t happening…”

Despite the satirical nature of the claim, Musk’s response underscores the challenges of distinguishing between satire and reality in today’s media landscape.