Advertisements from global corporations such as Apple, Disney and Warner Brothers are said to have repeatedly appeared alongside posts that openly sympathized with Hitler and the Nazis or attacked Jews. Musk himself had also openly spread an anti-Semitic conspiracy theory as “the truth”. Instead of showing insight, he threatens to take the matter to court – and once again falls into anti-Semitic murmurs.
The threat of legal action is directed against the media platform “Media Matters”. After 160 Jewish personalities called for an advertising boycott at As a result, IBM first announced an advertising stop at X, then several other companies such as Apple, Warner Brothers, the film studio Lionsgate and the cable giant Comcast followed suit.
Musk feels he has been treated unfairly – and has announced legal consequences. The presentation on Media Matters does not correspond to the facts, says a long post that paints X as a pioneer of freedom of expression. Of the more than 5.5 billion advertisements that day, only 50 were displayed alongside the posts documented by Media Matters, he tries to refute the allegations. “The second the courts open on Monday, we will sue,” Musk threatens.
However, this does not change one of the most serious allegations. Musk himself also fished heavily in anti-Semitic waters this week. “That’s the absolute truth,” Musk replied to an X-Post from Breakingbaht on Wednesday. He had claimed that Jewish communities incited racism against whites. And then he emphasized: “I have no sympathy at all for the Jews discovering that the illegal migrants whose infiltration they so encourage don’t particularly like them either.” The post is strongly reminiscent of the “Grand Replacement” theory, popular in right-wing circles, according to which migrants are brought to Western countries by “dark forces” – a euphemism for Jews – in order to make white people extinct. Even the original poster seems to be too much: he has since deleted his post. Musk’s answer is still online.
Such a reference can also be found in Musk’s threat to sue. He would uncover “their dark money networks,” he whispered in a follow-up post. Musk has long been advocating the theory in right-wing circles that the left is controlled by “dark financiers”. The main suspect, billionaire George Soros, is portrayed by the right-wing scene as a Jewish puppet master – and Musk has repeated this accusation several times in the past.
None of this means that Musk is consciously anti-Semitic. In recent days, he has repeatedly emphasized Israel’s right to self-defense and called Hamas’s battle cry of a Palestine free “from the river to the sea” a “call for genocide.” The fact that he shares the anti-Semitic conspiracy narratives and thus offers them an even larger stage will probably not please more sensitive advertising customers, nor will his recently expressed regret that as a white person you simply cannot be proud of your race.
That’s not surprising. The anti-Semitism posted on The group was one of X’s highest-spending advertising customers and repeatedly booked campaigns for new products or events. “I value it as a kind of marketplace for debates,” Cook said in an interview with “CBS,” emphasizing the advantages of the short message service. Cook, who is often rather diplomatic, answers the question of whether one should weigh up one’s advertising commitment in the light of anti-Semitism. Now the measure seems to have been exceeded.
It doesn’t help that the CEO Linda Yaccarino, appointed by Musk, repeatedly presents herself as a fighter against the problem. X had “extremely clearly demonstrated its efforts to combat anti-Semitism and discrimination,” she confirmed in a post on Thursday. Since taking office, Yaccarino has been in a fight against windmills. While Musk whips the company into a censorship-free bastion of freedom of expression and consciously gives a voice to very far-right actors, she has to contend with the resulting perception of a shift to the right on the platform. It was only in the summer that she announced with relief that numerous advertising customers had started booking with X again. The joy didn’t last long.
Meanwhile, Musk continues to attack. In one of his most recent posts he once again promoted the X Premium subscription offer. “Premium has no ads in your timeline”; he drummed for the subscription. And used the opportunity to shoot against his advertisers. “Many of the most important advertisers are among the greatest oppressors of freedom of expression,” he teased. Insight looks different.
Sources:X, Media Matters, CBS, Axios
