Australian government gave $2.7m to Elon Musk’s X for advertisements in billionaire’s first year as owner

Exclusive: Spending came after the Albanese government paused ads for a week amid reports ads were appearing next to inappropriate content

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The Australian government spent nearly $3m of taxpayer dollars advertising on Twitter/X in the first year after the world's richest man, Elon Musk, took over the platform, despite warnings of brand reputation damage that caused the government to initially pause ads.

Data obtained by Guardian Australia, after a protracted freedom of information battle with the federal finance department, revealed $2.7m was spent between November 2022 and November 2023. Musk finalised his purchase of the platform on 28 October 2022.

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