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Elon Musk calls Xi Jinping a 'great leader' in China interview

Tesla CEO also praised China's prosperity and the Shanghai factory team.

AI-assisted coverage comparison, editor-supervised · How this was made

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El director ejecutivo de Tesla y SpaceX, Elon MuskSusan Walsh / Ap-LaPresse

What this story says

  • Elon Musk called Chinese President Xi Jinping a "great leader" in an interview with Chinese state television CCTV.
  • Musk stated that China has prospered immensely under Xi Jinping's leadership.
  • He also praised Tesla's Shanghai factory and its team.
  • Musk is expected to attend a White House dinner in honour of Xi Jinping, hosted by Donald Trump.

Who covered it

Left 19%(5)Centre 27%(7)Right 54%(14)

Percentages are shares of the 26 outlets carrying a published leaning rating. 26 of the 52 outlets we know ran this story carry no rating and are not counted in them. Coverage measured .

Trust

42/100

Craft

61/100

Hype

41/100

52 sources · methodology

Elon Musk, chief executive of Tesla, described Chinese President Xi Jinping as a "great leader" during an interview with Chinese state television CCTV. Musk stated that China has prospered immensely under Xi's leadership, citing visible progress in new buildings and infrastructure. He also commented on the increased prosperity of the average Chinese citizen. Musk praised Tesla's Shanghai factory, calling it "a gem" and "beautiful," and described the team there as "incredibly talented, hardworking and trustworthy."

The interview took place ahead of a planned meeting between Xi Jinping and US President Donald Trump. Musk is expected to attend a state dinner at the White House hosted by Trump in honour of Xi. This meeting is described as the second summit this year between the leaders of the world's two largest economies.

Coverage comparison

What the coverage left out

None of the left-rated digests mention the specific date of the interview with CCTV, which La Vanguardia states was on Wednesday. None of the right-rated digests mention the specific date of the interview with CCTV, which La Vanguardia states was on Wednesday.

Coverage settled. We checked this 9 times and stopped on 28 Sept 2026, 19:45. The figures above are what it finished at.

How each side covered it

Our own reading of the reporting listed below, written from the outlets’ articles rather than quoted from them. The reasoning is set out on our methodology page.

Left

5 rated outlets

  • La Vanguardia, Hot News, The Independent, The Independent (US), and Cumhuriyet reported that Elon Musk called Xi Jinping a "great leader" in an interview with Chinese state television CCTV. These outlets stated Musk said China had prospered enormously under Xi's leadership.
  • La Vanguardia and Cumhuriyet also reported Musk praised the Tesla factory in Shanghai, calling the team "incredibly talented, hardworking and reliable." La Vanguardia added that Musk noted visible progress in new buildings and infrastructure.
  • La Vanguardia reported Musk is expected to attend a state dinner at the White House for Xi, who is scheduled to meet with President Donald Trump. The Independent and The Independent (US) did not mention the meeting with Trump or the state dinner.

Centre

7 rated outlets

  • Centre-rated reports from Devdiscourse, Reuters, and The Economic Times led with Elon Musk calling Xi Jinping a "great leader" in his interview with Chinese state television. These reports also included Musk's comments on China's immense prosperity under Xi's tenure and his praise for Tesla's Shanghai factory and its team. Digi 24 also reported these points, quoting Reuters as its source.

Right

14 rated outlets

  • Right-rated reports from topwar.ru, Iefimerida, Times Live, India Today, Protothema, Reformatorisch Dagblad, and Times of India all highlighted Elon Musk's praise for Xi Jinping, describing him as a "great leader." These reports also noted Musk's comments on China's prosperity under Xi and his positive remarks about Tesla's Shanghai factory. Iefimerida and Protothema specifically mentioned Musk's expected attendance at a White House dinner in Xi's honour.

Questions about this coverage

How did the left and right cover Elon Musk calls Xi Jinping a 'great leader' in China interview?
Of the 26 outlets on this story carrying a published leaning rating, 19% are rated left, 27% are rated centre, 54% are rated right. Those percentages are shares of the rated outlets, not of every outlet that ran it, which was 52. The sections above set out what each side emphasised, in its own terms.
Is Elon Musk calls Xi Jinping a 'great leader' in China interview left or right?
Neither side dominates it. Of the 26 rated outlets on this story, 19% are rated left, 27% are rated centre, 54% are rated right, and no side holds the 70% this site would want before calling a field one-sided. A story is not left or right in any case; the outlets that carried it are what carry ratings.
Is the coverage of Elon Musk calls Xi Jinping a 'great leader' in China interview biased?
Elon Musk calls Xi Jinping a 'great leader' in China interview is one event reported by 52 outlets, and this page does not rate the story as biased or unbiased. What it publishes is the spread: which outlets ran it, where named rating organisations place each of them on the spectrum, and what each side chose to lead with. A leaning rating describes an outlet's record over time, not this article, and the two should not be run together.
Which outlets covered Elon Musk calls Xi Jinping a 'great leader' in China interview?
52 that we know of, every one of them listed further up this page with a link to its own report and to what we hold on the publisher. Nothing here is a summary of somebody else's summary: the outlets are named so the original reporting can be read.
What did Elon Musk say about Xi Jinping?
Elon Musk described Chinese President Xi Jinping as a "great leader" in an interview with Chinese state television CCTV. He also stated that China has prospered immensely under Xi's leadership and praised the country's progress.
What did Musk say about Tesla in China?
Elon Musk praised Tesla's Shanghai factory, calling it "a gem" and "beautiful." He also described the team at the factory as "incredibly talented, hardworking and trustworthy."
When did this interview take place?
La Vanguardia reported that the interview with Chinese state television CCTV took place on Wednesday. Other reports do not specify the date of the interview.
What is the significance of the upcoming White House dinner?
Elon Musk is expected to attend a state dinner at the White House hosted by US President Donald Trump in honour of Chinese President Xi Jinping. This event marks a significant meeting between the leaders of the world's two largest economies.

Read it at the source

52 outlets, grouped by the leaning a published rating gives them. Every headline links to the original; an underlined outlet name opens our profile of that publisher.

Left

5

Centre

7

Right

14
Show 6 more

Not rated

26
Show 18 more

How did this read?

About the coverage, not about the story. We do not ask whether you agree with what happened — we have no honest use for that answer.

Elon Musk on Xi Jinping | MediaBias News