Trump says Musk restored Ukraine's Starlink access; WSJ reports Trump phoned Musk to ask
Trump said Musk had restored Ukraine's Starshield access after the WSJ reported Trump phoned Musk to ask. Ukrainian officials said speeds improved but the service was not fully restored, and who ordered the limits is still disputed.
Left 1 · Centre-left 10 · Centre 6 · Centre-right 7 · Right 5
Sources by leanFollow the moneyMore coverage
How each side framed it
Left-leaning outlets
Blame and harm: 'When Starshield cut out, Ukrainian drones fell from the skies' (NYT), and 'Trump's desperate denial… blown up' (Daily Beast).
Centre outlets
Centre-rated outlets headline it: “Musk has restored access to Ukraine's Starlink network, Trump says” (BBC News); “Trump says Musk restored Ukraine's Starlink access, declines to say if they spoke” (Reuters).
Right-leaning outlets
Trump fixing it: 'Trump steps in with phone call' (Daily Wire), 'Trump tells Elon Musk to lift any limits' (New York Post); National Review is 'not buying' the effort to blame Musk.
Holding the paradox
Agreed facts
Trump said Musk had restored Ukraine's access to SpaceX's military-grade Starlink service, known as Starshield, after the Wall Street Journal reported Trump phoned Musk to ask him to lift restrictions. Ukrainian officials said the service was faster but not fully restored. The limits had hampered Ukraine's drone and air-defence operations.
Where claims conflict
Who ordered the slowdown is still disputed: reports variously point to the White House (Reuters) or Musk (WSJ, Telegraph). Musk said on 14 October that limits are decided by 'the US military and ultimately POTUS'.
What each side is protecting
Left: accountability and Ukraine's defence. Right: a president's ability to fix problems and fairness to Musk.
Common ground
The limits hurt Ukraine's drone and air-defence operations. Access is now better, but Ukrainian officials say it isn't fully restored.
The paradox
A war's front line depended on one private company's settings, and on a phone call between two men. That is the power Europe says it now needs to build for itself.
The bridge
Shared question: should critical military communications ever depend on one company's or one person's choices?
Sources by lean
Balanced: the same number of articles from the left, the centre and the right (up to 3 each). The bar above still counts every rated outlet we found. Bias and factual ratings come from Media Bias/Fact Check. How we balance · All ratings.
Left 3
Centre 3
Showing 3 from each side of 29 rated outlets (L 11 / C 6 / R 12). More coverage
Follow the money
Not yet researched. We haven't yet looked at who gains or loses financially from this story, or who funds the main voices on each side. When we do, we check company filings, the Electoral Commission donations register, lobbying registers, annual reports, InfluenceMap and OpenSecrets, and we apply the same checks to every side. How we follow the money.
Who owns or funds the outlets covering this story (29 outlets)
| Outlet | Lean | Ownership & funding (MBFC) |
|---|---|---|
| Daily Beast | Left | The Daily Beast’s parent company is IAC (InterActiveCorp). which is run by Barry Diller, who had led the creation of the Fox network. IAC’s CEO is Joey Levin. IAC (InterActiveCorp) is a media and Internet company comprised of some of the world’s well-known brands, such as HomeAdvisor, Vimeo, About.com, Dictionary.com, Investopedia, and more. source |
| Al Jazeera | Centre-left | Al Jazeera is owned and funded by the state of Qatar. The founder and Chairman of the Board is Sheikh Hamad bin Thamer Al Thani, a member of Qatar’s ruling family, the House of Thani. According to a Fortune article, i n 2016, state-funded broadcaster Al Jazeera laid off 500 workers due to Qatar’s financial troubles resulting from low global prices for oil and natural gas. source |
| Bloomberg | Centre-left | Michael R. Bloomberg is the founder and majority owner of Bloomberg LP (The parent company of Bloomberg News). According to Investopedia, Bloomberg Terminal (remote software used to access financial information) is the most expensive among financial data providers. source |
| CNBC | Centre-left | CNBC is owned by NBC Universal, which Comcast owns. Comcast’s Chairman and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) is Brian L. Roberts, founded by his father, Ralph J. source |
| CNN | Centre-left | No ownership data found |
| Deutsche Welle | Centre-left | The German government funds Deutsche Welle (DW). They state, “DW is financed via funding from the state – i.e., from tax revenue. This is in contrast to the domestic public channels, which are funded via broadcasting fees.” source |
| Euronews | Centre-left | Euronews is owned by Alpac Capital, a Portugal-based investment fund that acquired an 88% stake in July 2022, with the remaining 12% held by government-supported broadcasters from Europe, Africa, and the Middle East. Ownership also has business ties with Hungary’s Viktor Orban. source |
| New York Times | Centre-left | The Ochs-Sulzberger family controls the New York Times through Class B shares. Since 1967, the company has been listed on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol NYT. Class B shares are those that are held privately. source |
| The Guardian | Centre-left | The Guardian and its companion publication, the Sunday newspaper The Observer, are owned by Guardian Media Group plc (GMG). Scott Trust Limited was created in 1936 to ensure the editorial independence of the publications and owns Guardian Media Group plc (GMG). source |
| Washington Post | Centre-left | In 2013, Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos bought The Washington Post for $250 million. Bezos is a frequent target of Trump, who has accused the businessman of using the Postal System as its “ Delivery Boy. ” The newspaper’s executive editor, Martin Baron, said Jeff Bezos, who founded Amazon, is not involved in its news coverage. source |
| Ynet News | Centre-left | Yedioth Ahronoth owns Ynetnews. Advertising derives revenue. source |
| BBC News | Centre | The BBC operates under a Royal Charter. Oversight is managed by the BBC Board, and regulatory authority rests with Ofcom. source |
| Financial Times | Centre | The Financial Times is owned by The Nikkei, a Japanese news and financial information company that publishes the leading financial paper, The Nikkei. The FT generates revenue through subscriptions, a hard paywall, and advertising..push({}); source |
| News24 | Centre | Media24 owns and publishes News24.com. They publish several magazines, newspapers, and online publications in South Africa. Advertising and subscription fees generate revenue. source |
| Reuters | Centre | In April 2008, the British company Reuters Group was acquired by Thomson Corporation and formed Thomson Reuters. source |
| The Economist | Centre | The Economist is owned by the Economist Group, which is a British multinational media company. They are primarily owned by the Cadbury, Rothschild, Schroder, Layton, and Agnelli families. Subscriptions, advertising, and sponsored content generate revenue for the Economist. source |
| The Hill | Centre | In 2021, The Hill was purchased by Nexstar, which owns around 200 TV stations and media outlets nationwide. The founder, chairman, president, and CEO of Nexstar is Perry A. Sook. source |
| CBS News | Centre-right | CBS News is owned by Paramount Global, which was formerly controlled by National Amusements, Inc., the holding company of the Redstone family. In 2025, Paramount entered into a merger agreement with Skydance Media, effectively ending the Redstones’ majority control. CBS News generates revenue primarily through advertising and affiliate broadcasting fees..push({}); source |
| Jerusalem Post | Centre-right | In 1989, the paper was purchased by Hollinger Inc. for $17-million, which Canadian-born British Conservative Conrad Black owned. Conrad Black later was charged with “swindling his company, Hollinger International, of $60 million.” He was serving a prison sentence; however, in 2019, President Donald Trump pardoned him. source |
| New York Post | Centre-right | The New York Post is owned by Rupert Murdoch’s News Corp, which owns many conservative/sensational media outlets worldwide. The paper is funded through advertising, subscriptions, and newsstand sales. source |
| Newsweek | Centre-right | Newsweek is owned by Newsweek Publishing LLC, which is co-owned by Dev Pragad and Johnathan Davis. Newsweek is funded through a paid subscription and advertising model. source |
| Wall Street Journal | Centre-right | In 2007, The Bancroft family and relatives sold the Wall Street Journal to Rupert Murdoch for 5 billion dollars. Rupert Murdoch also purchased its parent company, Dow Jones & Co., through News Corporation. Subscriptions and advertising fund the Wall Street Journal. source |
| Washington Examiner | Centre-right | The Washington Examiner is owned by Clarity Media Group, owned by Philip Anschutz, an American billionaire entrepreneur who describes himself as a “conservative Christian.” Anschutz is also the owner of the right-leaning Weekly Standard and has donated millions of dollars to right-leaning causes, including anti-LGBT groups, such as the Family Research Council, which has been labeled a hate group. source |
| Washington Times | Centre-right | Operations Holdings Inc is the Washington Times owner, owned by the Unification Church of South Korea, through their holding company HSA-UWC (Holy Spirit Association for the Unification of World Christianity). In 1954, Reverend Sun Myung Moon founded this religious movement in South Korea, known for its mass weddings, and its members are referred to as “Moonies.” source |
| Breitbart | Right | After the death of Andrew Breitbart in 2012, Larry Solov became CEO and president of Breitbart News. In 2017, according to Politico, Larry Solov revealed the owner of Breitbart as “himself, founder Andrew Breitbart’s widow, Susie Breitbart, and the Republican mega-donor family, the Mercers.” Further, Solov also stated that he wants “to disclose as little as possible about financial and ownership structure.” source |
| Daily Wire | Right | Bentkey Ventures, LLC (formerly Forward Publishing, LLC) owns the Daily Wire, which was heavily backed and co-founded by fossil fuel billionaires Farris and Dan Wilks. The platform generates revenue through a hybrid model combining premium digital subscriptions via DailyWire+, targeted advertising, and direct-to-consumer e-commerce. source |
| National Review | Right | The National Review magazine and website are both owned by the National Review Institute. William F. Buckley Jr. founded the National Review Institute as a nonprofit, and according to an article from The Nation, the “National Review‘s biggest financial supporter, Roger Milliken was a Birch Society member. source |
| The Sun | Right | The Sun is published by the News Group Newspapers division of News UK, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Rupert Murdoch’s News Corp. The paper generates revenue through advertising, newsstand sales, and subscriptions. source |
| The Telegraph | Right | Telegraph Media Group (TMG) owns The Telegraph, which is owned by Press Acquisitions Ltd., which in turn is owned by Sir David and Sir Frederick Barclay. In 2004, Twin Brothers Sir David and Sir Frederick Barclay acquired the Daily Telegraph and the Sunday Telegraph from the Canadian media company Hollinger Inc. for £665 million. For a complete list of Board members, see here. source |
Social pulse
This is a signal of what people are discussing, not evidence of what happened. We don't rate the bias of social media posts.
X: 7,052 posts matching “Musk Starlink Ukraine -is:retweet”
AI-generated summary of X posts, written by X. Not verified fact.
Trump Called Musk to Restore Ukraine's Restricted Starlink Service
U.S. officials said the Starshield terminals, throttled earlier by Musk, started working more normally right after Trump's call. Ukrainian officials noted higher speeds but said a 161 km/h cap remains, with no full restoration. Vice President JD Vance called it ironic that European nations criticize SpaceX regulations yet rely on its tech for Ukraine support. The situation highlights tensions over private companies' roles in wartime satellite access.
Updated 23 Oct 07:40 UK time · View on X
AI-generated summary of X posts, written by X. Not verified fact.
Report Claims Musk Slowed Starlink for Ukraine Drones
The Wall Street Journal reported that Elon Musk ordered a cap on Starlink speeds around October 14, rendering some Ukrainian drones inoperable amid battlefield operations. The move followed Musk and President Trump's criticism of Ukraine's strikes on Russian energy targets, though accounts vary on whether Musk decided alone or consulted U.S. officials. Musk countered that Starshield systems are U.S. government-controlled, with limits set by the military and president; Secretary Rubio denied White House involvement, stressing Starlink's status as a private company. Critics from journalists to EU leaders demand restoration and investigations, highlighting risks of depending on one provider for wartime comms.
Updated 21 Oct 21:53 UK time · View on X