What he calls “the voice of the people” is just the sound of his own algorithm.
In ancient times, tyrants invoked the gods. In digital times, they invoke the algorithm.
Musk’s favorite phrase — vox populi, vox Dei (“the voice of the people is the voice of God”) — is not a celebration of democracy. It is a disguise. Because his polls are not democratic. They are curated, gamed, and narrow.
- His platform is not representative.
- His sample is not randomized.
- His users are not informed voters.
- His questions are not neutral.
This is not governance. It is digital theater.
The illusion is powerful: millions of votes, instantaneous graphs, the thrill of direct participation. But it is the participation of a carefully fenced crowd, drawn to his personality and shaped by his feed.
Populism 2.0 doesn’t happen in the village square. It happens in the app store.
- Not pamphlets, but push notifications.
- Not soapboxes, but poll widgets.
- Not angry crowds, but dopamine loops.
And Musk sits at the center, not as a listener, but as the director of the illusion.
He is not hearing the people. He is playing the people.
And worse: he may have come to believe it himself.
When your platform echoes you, and your followers cheer you, and your polls crown you, it becomes easy to mistake feedback for consent, and fandom for legitimacy.
But outside the app, politics is not code. It’s not a test. It’s compromise, coalition, criticism, and consequence.
And no amount of RTs can protect you from that.