Musk has a history of using humor and memes to hint at serious ventures, including his acquisition of X in 2022. Though his comments on MSNBC seem playful, they resonate with ongoing industry changes.

While technically not putting the networks up for sale, Olbermann said it’s a sign the company ... by a finance meme account that incorrectly stated, “Comcast is putting MSNBC up for sale.” ...

And now he is posting memes about buying the channel ... Comcast has not put a “for sale” sign on MSNBC’s door. If Comcast chief Brian Roberts really wanted to sell the liberal cable ...

Rather, the rumor about the supposed sale of MSNBC was amplified by an X account known as WallStreetMav, which states in its bio that it posts memes and covers finance, economics and news.