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On November 18th, Elon Musk, the billionaire entrepreneur and CEO of Tesla, made headlines once again due to his controversial comments on his social media platform, X. Musk threatened to sue Media Matters, a media watchdog group, and anyone who criticized his platform for promoting antisemitic content. Since Musk’s acquisition of X in 2022, the site has been under scrutiny for its proliferation of anti-Semitic and racist content.
The controversy began when Musk endorsed a post on X that falsely claimed members of the Jewish community were spreading hatred among white people. The post referenced a conspiracy theory that suggests Jews encouraged the arrival of people of color in Western nations. This theory was notably supported by the individual who carried out the tragic shooting at a Pittsburgh synagogue in 2018, resulting in the deaths of 11 people. Musk replied to the post, stating, “You said the pure truth.”
The endorsement of such hateful content raised concerns among advertisers. According to an article published by Media Matters for America, major brands like Apple, Bravo, Oracle, Xfinity, and IBM had their ads displayed alongside “pro-Nazi” messages on X. This revelation prompted several advertisers to withdraw their ads from the platform.
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In response to the article, Musk took to his own social network to label Media Matters as a “nefarious organization.” However, his dismissive remarks did little to quell the mounting backlash. A group of 164 Jewish leaders, including rabbis, artists, and academics of various ideologies, issued a statement denouncing the antisemitism on X and accusing Musk of promoting it. They called for large corporations to come together and cease funding the platform.
Some companies swiftly responded to the call for action. IBM announced that it would halt advertising on X while it investigated the situation. Lionsgate, a major entertainment company, also pledged to do the same. Worried about misinformation, the European Commission (EC) requested that its services suspend their advertising campaigns on X.
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Musk, however, remained defiant. In a statement on X, he declared that X Corp would take “thermonuclear action” against Media Matters and all those involved in the “fraudulent attack” on his company. Despite Musk’s rhetoric, more companies followed suit and suspended their advertisements on X, including Disney, Warner Bros. Discovery, Comcast, Lions Gate Entertainment, Paramount Global, and Apple, the world’s largest company by market capitalization.
In an attempt to defend himself, Musk claimed that Media Matters had misrepresented the reality of the X experience in order to undermine free speech and mislead advertisers. He alleged that the organization had set up a separate account to misinform advertisers about tweets on the platform. However, civil liberties organizations argue that since Musk took over X and reduced content moderation, hate speech has increased, resulting in the departure of advertisers.
The controversy surrounding Musk’s remarks also caught the attention of the White House. The administration condemned his endorsement of the anti-Semitic conspiracy theory, describing it as “horrible” and accusing Musk of promoting abominable practices and racist hatred that contradict American values.
It is important to note that this incident is not an isolated event. Antisemitism has been on the rise globally in recent years, including in the United States. According to the Anti-Defamation League (ADL), incidents of anti-Semitism in the United States spiked by over 400% following the outbreak of war between Israel and the Palestinian Islamic militant group Hamas in October.
The fallout from Musk’s comments on X has had a significant impact on the platform. Advertisers fleeing and widespread condemnation from various quarters highlight the consequences of promoting hate speech and the responsibilities that come with owning and overseeing a social media platform. As the controversy continues, it remains to be seen how Musk and X will address the concerns raised by critics and the affected advertisers.
