Advertisers Abandon X, Escalating Trouble for Elon Musk's Social Media Platform
X faces a major crisis as top advertisers abandon the platform, severely damaging Elon Musk's social media site The company's reputation took a massive hit after Musk publicly embraced an antisemitic conspiracy theory, favored by white supremacists
Prominent brands across the globe dealt a severe blow to Elon Musk's social media platform, X, by ceasing their advertising on Friday. This came in response to Musk openly endorsing an antisemitic conspiracy theory that aligns with the beliefs of White supremacists. The revolt from renowned advertisers includes major media giants such as Disney, Paramount, NBCUniversal, Comcast, Lionsgate, Warner Bros., and CNN's parent company, Discovery.
X also reportedly lost Apple, according to multiple news outlets including Axios, which first reported Apples withdrawal.
Apple did not respond to multiple requests for comment.
The rapid and extensive withdrawals from X, the platform formerly known as Twitter, are occurring amidst a growing backlash against Musk for his increasingly vocal support of extremist ideologies. This also raises concerns about the future of the company, which Musk and X CEO, Linda Yaccarino, had promised would regain profitability by next year.
The companies' advertising pauses come in response to IBM's recent actions. IBM had their advertisements displayed alongside pro-Nazi content on the platform, prompting the company to issue a statement denouncing the situation as "entirely unacceptable."
"IBM spokesperson stated that IBM has a strict policy against hate speech and discrimination, leading to the immediate suspension of all advertising on X while a thorough investigation into this completely unacceptable situation is conducted. CNN has contacted X for their comments on the recent brand exodus occurring on Friday."
In a social media post on Friday, Linda Yaccarino, the CEO of X, expressed their strong commitment to fighting against antisemitism and discrimination. She emphasized that there is absolutely no tolerance for such behavior anywhere in the world.
Making it clear, Musk stated on X Friday evening that anyone who endorses genocide against any group will face suspension from this platform.
Media Matters, a watchdog group, conducted an analysis this week revealing that ads from Apple, Comcast, NBC, and Oracle, as well as IBM, had appeared alongside comparable content.
Comment requests to Oracle spokespeople have remained unanswered.
According to a spokesperson from X, the pro-Nazi accounts mentioned in the Media Matters report released on Thursday will no longer qualify for monetization. This implies that advertisements will no longer be displayed on those specific pages. Earlier in August, two additional brands, namely NCTAthe Internet and Television Association, and Gilead Sciences, temporarily ceased their advertising investments with X due to their ads being displayed alongside pro-Nazi content.
