The X social media platform, formally known as Twitter, has been involved in a series of controversies since Elon Musk became the CEO in late 2022. These controversies include issues such as layoffs, users leaving the platform, inconsistent product updates, and debates over free speech.
Recently, a new debate has emerged regarding whether Musk secretly manipulated the results of a monetization test conducted by popular YouTuber MrBeast in order to artificially increase his earnings.
MrBeast agreed to upload one of his viral videos from the past onto X to evaluate its potential for generating advertising revenue. Within a few days, he surprised many people by announcing that the 16-minute video had earned over $250,000 through more than 150 million views.
However, upon closer analysis of the available data, there appear to be irregularities in how the post was promoted and discrepancies in the metrics that cannot be explained logically based on X's current advertiser and user circumstances.
This article explores the evidence suggesting that Musk may have manually manipulated the systems behind the scenes to create the huge earnings figure.
How everything unfolded
MrBeast is known for creating extravagant and costly stunt videos. He has consistently voiced his dissatisfaction with the lack of proper monetization on platform X, stating that it's not worth it for him to post original content there. This has been a significant concern for X's CEO, Elon Musk, who has been working to attract more top creators to the platform.
In what appeared to be an attempt to bridge the gap, MrBeast agreed in mid-January 2024 to test the financial performance of one of his existing videos on X. He uploaded a 16-minute clip titled "$1 vs $100,000,000 Car!" to X, which had already accumulated over 215 million views on YouTube since September 2022.
Within 3 days, MrBeast announced astonishing results - the video had received over 150 million views on X and generated $263,655 in ad revenue. At first glance, this seemed to validate Musk's claims that X could provide higher payout rates compared to its competitors.
However, MrBeast himself downplayed these numbers, suggesting that they might not reflect the true situation. He referred to them as a "bit of a facade" and speculated that advertisers may have purchased more ad slots due to the unusual attention the video received, thus inflating the estimated revenue per view. This initial hint of uncertainty indicated that things might not be as they appeared.
Signs of preferential treatment and promotion
There were several indications of preferential treatment and promotion that users on platform X noticed, suggesting that the data had been manipulated behind the scenes. One prominent sign was that MrBeast's post appeared multiple times in users' feeds without timestamps or clear "Ad" labels, which is not typical for promoted posts.
What was particularly noteworthy was that just days before the results were announced, an anonymous user had predicted that MrBeast and Musk had struck some kind of deal behind closed doors. This prediction was based on the unusual frequency with which the video was appearing in feeds. After the fact, metadata analysts were able to piece together evidence that supported this claim.
The revenue numbers also seemed highly implausible, considering that X had been experiencing a well-documented loss of advertisers who were hesitant to spend money on a platform known for its unpredictability and controversies under Musk's leadership. There was no reasonable explanation for how this single video could have generated such significant advertising revenue when the platform as a whole was struggling.
The response from Elon Musk
When faced with the growing evidence, Elon Musk didn't directly deny the accusations of manipulation. Instead, in response to a different X account praising MrBeast's success, he wrote:
"To the best of my knowledge, we haven't done anything to boost his viewership."
However, legal experts point out that this response isn't a clear denial, and the phrase "to the best of my knowledge" leaves room for doubt if later evidence of manipulation emerges. Musk's words didn't do much to address concerns about fairness and transparency for all creators.
Some digging by users also unearthed screenshots from older versions of the X app. Older versions of the app clearly showed MrBeast's post labeled as "Promoted," which contradicted Musk's suggestion that the post didn't receive any special treatment. This discovery further confirmed that something was intentionally hidden from the audience.
Chris Kubbernus, the CEO of social media agency Kubbco, commented on this situation, emphasizing that providing preferential treatment to mega-stars like MrBeast may produce short-term gains but won't address the underlying issues.
He stated, "They need a plan to drive traffic and users to X to bring advertisers back - relying on a select few creators may not be enough."
The biggest danger for any platform is losing credibility, and secretive deals and manipulated experiments gradually erode that trust. Prioritizing a temporary revenue boost over transparency risks damaging trust in the long run.
History of stats manipulation at X
Manipulation at X has happened before, unfortunately. In late 2022, Mashable reported that there were undisclosed ads on the platform after Musk acquired it. These ads didn't have clear labels and may have violated laws regarding truth in advertising.
During that time, a nonprofit called Check My Ads, which monitors online marketing practices, filed a complaint because there were many ads without transparency indicators. So the idea that Musk would manipulate settings to secretly increase the visibility of MrBeast's posts is in line with previous questionable behavior.
While there isn't concrete evidence without access to X's internal data, there are numerous inconsistencies, contradictions, and unrealistic outcomes that strongly suggest artificial interference rather than genuinely organic statistics. No other reasonable explanation has been put forward.
Where does this leave X content creators?
If what many people believe is true, X has seriously damaged its credibility and faces the risk of more negative consequences resulting from this situation. As a result, content creators may become rightfully skeptical of any revenue or engagement numbers that are shared without clarifications, since it seems that special exceptions are becoming the norm.
Advertisers, too, will be cautious about investing without clear guidelines and proper oversight to protect their brands from being associated with messy politics or dishonest data.
The controversy doesn't do much to solve these problems and arguably makes them worse by reducing trust.
Meanwhile, MrBeast's reputation among fans and peers is also at risk due to his involvement
in what appears to be a rigged scenario, even if his role was minimal. This could tarnish his image, which was built on authenticity and transparency.
The most concerning aspect of this situation is that these secretive and unfair actions set a troubling precedent, suggesting that popular and influential individuals can ignore the standard rules. If X wants to establish a sustainable creator economy, it must prioritize fairness and impartiality as fundamental values. However, these qualities have been severely tested in this case and may be irreparably damaged for many people.
The only way for platforms to regain the public's trust, which has been compromised by incidents like this, is by embracing accountability, enforcing policies consistently, and operating transparently. Whether Musk believes this is possible remains uncertain, but continuing to rely on behind-the-scenes deals and distortion will undoubtedly have increasing costs for all parties involved over time.
Conclusion
MrBeast's foray into X's ad revenue experiment has sparked discussions about the platform's transparency and the role of influential figures like Elon Musk.
As X continues to overcome challenges in attracting advertisers and creators, ensuring transparency in advertising practices remains crucial for sustaining user trust and platform credibility.
But where does this leave regular advertisers and affiliate marketers who intend to buy traffic from the X platform? Could this also be the reason why almost no one in the affiliate marketing space has come out with a case study of successfully promoting an affiliate offer or e-commerce product with X ads?
