ALBAWABA – Multiple advertisers are pulling out of X, formerly Twitter, in the wake of the accusations frenzy that took over the microblogging website over what seemed like Elon Musk endorsing an antisemitic conspiracy theory.
The debate over whether or not Musk is antisemetic carries on.
Big-time advertisers are pulling out of X
Meanwhile, Nonprofit group Media Matters said Apple, Disney, Comcast, Lionsgate Entertainment and Paramount Global are among the companies pausing advertising on X, according to Agence France-Presse (AFP).
Advertisers are pulling out of X, formerly Twitter - Shutterstock
"Lionsgate has suspended advertising on X because of Elon Musk's recent antisemitic tweets," a spokesperson for the motion picture production and distribution company told AFP.
IBM on Thursday said it stopped advertising on X due to a report that its ads were shown next to pro-Nazi posts at X, while Apple and Disney did not reply to AFP’s requests for comment.
"Major blue-chip companies are announcing they will suspend all advertising," the non-profit group said on a web page featuring a running list.
In response to an X user accusing Jewish communities of spreading hate against white people, Musk responded saying “You have said the actual truth”.
However, Musk claimed in another response that his remark was driven by or intended to criticize the ADL, a non-profit that has been harassing Musk for months, he claimed.
White House slams Musk as advertisers are pulling out of X
Referring to Musk's post, White House spokesman Andrew Bates said it was "unacceptable" to repeat such a "hideous lie."
"We condemn this abhorrent promotion of anti-Semitic and racist hate in the strongest terms, which runs against our core values as Americans," Bates said.
In the year since taking over Twitter, now rebranded as X, Musk has gutted content moderation and restored accounts of previously banned rightwing activists. He also allowed users to purchase account verification, helping them profit from viral posts, regardless of accuracy, according to AFP.
Advertisers are pulling out of X, formerly Twitter, over antisemetic accusations against Musk - Shutterstock
"During all of this Musk-induced chaos, corporate advertisements have also been appearing on pro-Hitler, Holocaust denial, white nationalist, pro-violence, and neo-Nazi accounts," Media Matters said in a post displaying samples of what it found at X.
Media Matters reported that it found Apple, Oracle and IBM ads displayed next to posts touting Hitler and the Nazi Party on X.
An X executive told AFP that it did a "sweep" of accounts pointed out by Media Matters and they will no longer be able to make money from ads.
The posts themselves will be labeled "sensitive media," according to the executive.
"Ads follow the people on X, in this case the Media Matter's researcher that was going to actively look for this content - that's how user targeting works," the executive said in an emailed reply.
