> freedom of speech has seemingly become a right-wing talking point
Because hate speech and misinformation is part of the right wing platform...
That kind of thinking will definitely not help you be able to put the whole puzzle together.
> bringing in Musk mostly balances the equation rather tilting it from neutral to the right
This is ignoring voter manipulation which was a big part of the 2016 election (as proven by the Cambridge Analytica leaks among other) tilting the voter to the right (see also e.g. brexit’s leave campaign illegal campaign financing and other dodgy behavior).
Compared to these—often flat out illegal—actions by the right, moderating hate speech is nothing.
I also find it interesting that freedom of speech has seemingly become a right-wing talking point.