A Pew Research Center study reveals that Americans hold largely unfavorable views of Elon Musk and Mark Zuckerberg. While Zuckerberg's newfound interest in high fashion has generated buzz in Silicon Valley, the Meta CEO's popularity lags behind that of President Trump's close advisor, Elon Musk. About 54% of U.S. adults view Musk unfavorably, while a significant 67% hold a negative opinion of Zuckerberg. Increased scrutiny has been placed on both tech executives since the start of President Trump's second term; both attended his inauguration and donated to his inaugural fund. Zuckerberg has altered longstanding Meta content moderation policies to curtail fact-checking and action against hate speech, while Musk has played a key role within Trump's administration. During Trump's first month in office, Musk actively involved himself in U.S. government operations, leveraging his political connections to weaken government departments like USAID. Musk's DOGE also exaggerated the impact of budget cuts by billions of dollars. Given Musk's association with Trump, 85% of Democrats or Democrat-leaning respondents held unfavorable views of the Tesla CEO. Conversely, 73% of Republicans or Republican-leaning respondents viewed Musk favorably. Zuckerberg, however, faces more widespread disapproval, though more intense criticism from left-leaning individuals. While 60% of Republicans and Republican-leaning respondents view Zuckerberg unfavorably, a significant 76% of their Democratic counterparts share the same sentiment. Despite Zuckerberg's attempts to cultivate a cool image, his efforts seem to have failed to sway public opinion. The Pew study surveyed 5,086 randomly selected U.S. adults between January 27 and February 2, 2025, providing a snapshot of recent public sentiment.
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