Forbes: Musk's Petition Giveaway Just A Really Expensive Election Promotion

Rob Lalka, Albert R. Lepage Professor in Business, was interviewed by Forbes for a story about Elon Musk's plan to give away $1 million a day to voters in key swing states who sign a petition pledging support for the First and Second Amendments. The plan was revealed to be not a lottery but a promotion for Donald Trump in which the recipients were pre-vetted to ensure their values align with Musk's super PAC.

"As we just learned, winners weren't chosen randomly but were instead hand-picked as paid spokespeople," said Lalka. "Philadelphia's District Attorney, who has sued Musk's PAC for illegal activities, has called it 'political marketing masquerading as a lottery.' But this tactic wasn't dreamt up overnight. The 'growth hacking ' that fueled PayPal's explosive growth decades ago seems to have been repurposed this year as a headline-grabbing political strategy."

To read the story in its entirety, visit forbes.com:

https://www.forbes.com/sites/petersuciu/2024/11/04/musks-petition-giveaway-just-a-really-expensive-election-promotion/