(Molly Bruns, Headline USA) Elon Musk has released a statement confirming he will not be purchasing the One America News Network, putting rest to rumors that had been making the social media rounds.
Speculation that the conservative network might be another acquisition by the eccentric billionaire was originally fueled by a tweet from Robert Herring, CEO, Western Journal reported.
“We just received a call from somebody very close to [Musk] telling us that he would like to talk to us about purchasing [OANN],” Herring tweeted.
We just received a call from somebody very close to @elonmusk telling us that he would like to talk to us about purchasing @OANN.
— Robert Herring (@RobHerring) June 9, 2022
Musk replied shortly after, clarifying the situation.
“Only Twitter,” he said.
Only Twitter
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) June 9, 2022
It’s not clear exactly what happened to lead Herring to believe Musk was going to purchase his network.
What do we think happened here? I’m thinking either OAN guy fell for a prankster or sent the tweet as part of some 5D chess move to get Musk interested in buying them. pic.twitter.com/PRjoz2ULEa
— Will Sommer (@willsommer) June 9, 2022
The Tesla mogul quickly let the air out of this “trial balloon.” https://t.co/vivOaoVV89
— HuffPost Women (@HuffPostWomen) June 9, 2022
Recently, OANN was kicked off the DirecTV lineup due to their coverage of the 2020 election and the pandemic, according to Newsweek.
“This is an action to redress the unchecked influence and power that Defendants have wielded in an attempt to unlawfully destroy an independent, family-run business and impede the right of American television viewers to watch the news media channels and programs of their choice,” Herring Networks alleged in a suit against AT&T, the parent company of DirecTV.
With Musk’s deal to purchase Twitter, it is possible that Herring mistakenly thought the Tesla CEO was interested in branching into further networks and news outlets.
