Silicon Valley's darling, X, loses support from major companies in wake of antisemitic controversy
In recent years, X, formerly known as Twitter, has become a household name and a favorite among Silicon Valley elites. However, a recent controversy involving CEO and founder Elon Musk has caused a major shift in support for the social media platform.
Numerous companies, including some of the most influential and successful in the world, have pulled their advertising from X. Among them are tech giants Apple and IBM, media conglomerates Disney and NBCUniversal, and entertainment powerhouses Lions Gate Entertainment, Warner Bros. Discovery, and Paramount.
This mass exodus comes after Musk voiced his support for an antisemitic conspiracy theory on the platform.
The comment comes amid heightened tensions due to the Israel-Hamas war, which has led to conflicts on U.S. college campuses over alleged antisemitic and anti-Muslim incidents. Meanwhile, since Hamas militants launched a surprise assault on Israel in October and Israeli attacks in Gaza, there has been a significant rise in antisemitic incidents across the U.S., according to data released by the ADL.
The original post's sentiment echoes some antisemitic conspiracy theories claiming that Jewish people want to bring in minorities to weaken White majorities. That belief was espoused by convicted murderer Robert Bowers, who raged against Jewish people online before shooting 11 people dead at the Tree of Life synagogue in Pittsburgh in 2018.
The CEO openly backed a post claiming that Jewish communities support "dialectical hatred against whites." This sparked outrage and condemnation from civil rights groups, who have warned of the rise of antisemitism and hate speech on X.
X's response to the backlash has been lackluster, with CEO Linda Yaccarino issuing a statement that the company has been "extremely clear" about its efforts to combat discrimination and hate speech.
However, for some companies, this was not enough assurance to continue their advertising on the platform.
In a statement shared with news media, IBM made it clear that it has "zero tolerance for hate speech and discrimination" and has suspended all advertising on X while the situation is being investigated. The sentiment was echoed by other major companies, who have also made it clear that they will not tolerate any form of hate speech or discrimination within their advertising platforms.
The exodus of advertisers has not gone unnoticed by X, with an executive admitting that they have suspended monetization for accounts identified by left-leaning nonprofit Media Matters for America for promoting hate speech. However, this damage control has not been enough to stop the bleeding, as more and more companies pull their ads from the platform.
READ MORE:
KMART AUSTRALIA PULLS HOLIDAY BAGS AFTER CONFUSION WITH HAMAS
COLORADO LEADERS REACT TO HAMAS SURPRISE ATTACK ON ISRAEL ON SHABBAT
Even the European Commission has joined in on boycotting X, with a spokesperson stating that they have "seen an alarming increase in disinformation and hate speech" on the platform.
In a time where social media plays a significant role in shaping public opinion and discourse, X's failure to address hate speech and discrimination has resulted in a major backlash from its biggest advertisers.