'Hard to come to that conclusion': Ben Shapiro defends Elon Musk from charges of antisemitism

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: Conservative commentator Ben Shapiro came to the defense of tech mogul Elon Musk this week, stating that Musk is "definitely not an antisemite." Shapiro's comments came during an interview with British broadcaster Piers Morgan on Morgan's show 'Piers Morgan Uncensored.'

The accusations of antisemitism against Musk stem primarily from his recent decisions regarding content moderation on X (formerly Twitter) since his takeover of the social media platform.

However, Shapiro, who is Jewish and has been outspoken against antisemitism, said that those judging Musk should look at his full record on issues related to Jews and Israel.

Ben Shapiro says Elon Musk's overall record on Jewish issues is mostly positive

Shapiro told Morgan during the interview that people calling Musk antisemitic based on select controversial decisions should "look at the full corpus of everything that he’s had to say on antisemitism, on Israel, on what’s going on in the world."

Shapiro seems to be referring to Musk's predominantly vocal support for Jewish causes and the state of Israel over the years. For example, last week Musk accompanied Shapiro on a visit to the Auschwitz concentration camp memorial in Poland to film an episode of Shapiro's show 'The Search,' as per Wall Street Journal.

The billionaire has also spoken in support of Israel's right to exist and defend itself on numerous occasions. "It’s very hard to come to that [antisemitic] conclusion" about Musk, Shapiro asserted.

Ben Shapiro believes that Elon Musk's unfiltered style leads to misunderstandings

Shapiro also suggested that some of the controversy surrounding Musk and charges of antisemitism trace back to the tech entrepreneur's shoot-from-the-hip public persona.

"He sort of puts out whatever he’s thinking in the moment, unedited — that’s one of the benefits; that’s one of the drawbacks," Shapiro explained. "Very often, he will come back and sort of fill out exactly what he meant to say."

He further added that interviewing Musk is fascinating because he takes time to genuinely consider questions before responding. "You’ll actually see him shift his opinion in real time as he processes the question," Shapiro stated.

Piers Morgan reveals lost opportunity to interview Elon Musk on his show

Morgan revealed to Shapiro during their sit-down that he had been pursuing an interview with Musk for over a year, only to have it canceled suddenly.

According to Morgan, just two days before he was set to fly to Texas to interview Musk in person, Musk sent him a video of Morgan criticizing Musk for allowing controversial conspiracy theorist Alex Jones back on X. Musk then abruptly canceled the planned interview, saying he had lost all respect for Morgan over the criticism.

"He said he lost all respect for me because I would do that, and the interview was summarily canceled," a disappointed Morgan explained. "So I never got the chance to interview him, which is a great regret, because I think he’s probably the most fascinating guy in the world right now."