Elon Musk releases drug test results after press allegations

Elon Musk responded strongly Tuesday to accusations of drug use published by The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal, by publicly sharing a negative toxicology test that seeks to debunk insinuations about his alleged ketamine use during the 2024 presidential campaign.

The businessman posted on his social network X an image of the results, which detected no traces of ketamine or other substances. The publication was accompanied by a terse "lol", an abbreviation for laughing out loud, used to express his derision at the reports disseminated by both media.

Musk did not simply deny the reports: he later challenged the New York Times and the Wall Street Journal to submit themselves to drug tests and make the results public. In that post, he accused the journalists of being "guilty as sin." He also shared an image of the Journal logo, suggesting that the acronym "WSJ" should be interpreted as "We suck at journalism."

Both media outlets had reported that some Tesla board members would have considered seeking a replacement for Musk, a version that was denied by the company's chairman. They also noted that the entrepreneur travels with a box of pills, some allegedly identified as Adderall.

Times sticks to its version

Musk had already rejected the Times claims and reiterated that he does not use drugs. He also clarified that he tried ketamine years ago under a doctor's prescription and had even mentioned it publicly on X.

Despite his statements, The New York Times issued a statement reaffirming its position: "Elon Musk is continuing to lash out because he doesn’t like our reporting. Nothing that he’s said or presented since our article about his drug use during the presidential campaign was published contradicts what we uncovered. We stand by our journalism."

Friction between Musk and the traditional media is not new, and this new episode reinforces his stance of publicly confronting what he considers to be unfounded attacks. True to his style, the businessman made it clear that he will not allow versions to be spread that, according to him, seek to damage his credibility at a key moment of his business and political influence.