Tesla Inc. CEO Elon Musk has long been at odds with the media.
So much so that the automaker dissolved its public relations department two years ago, essentially making Musk and his Twitter account the company's public voice.
But prominent Tesla supporters, including financial analysts, are calling on Musk to re-establish a media relations team following confusing reports last week about looming staff layoffs, which tanked the stock price on Friday.
Given that Tesla did not respond to media inquiries about potential reductions in headcount — or file a shareholder statement — speculation ran rampant about the automaker's ambitious growth targets in the current economic climate.
"I've said this many times about TSLA's refusal to invest in PR," Gary Black, managing partner at The Future Fund, wrote on Twitter Sunday. "You can't complain you lost if you never showed up for the game."