On Monday (20th November), Elon Musk filed a lawsuit against ‘Media Matters for America’ after it accused X (formerly Twitter) of promoting ‘anti-Semitism’.The development comes two days after Musk accused the leftist NGO of manipulation and fraud, leading to the exodus of big advertisers from the micro-blogging platform.
In its lawsuit, X said, “Media Matters knowingly and maliciously manufactured side-by-side images depicting advertisers’ posts on X Corp.’s social media platform beside Neo-Nazi and white-nationalist fringe content and then portrayed these manufactured images as if they were what typical X users experience on the platform.”
“Media Matters designed both these images and its resulting media strategy to drive advertisers from the platform and destroy X Corp,” the Elon Musk-owned company stated.
Fraud has both civil & criminal penalties pic.twitter.com/BdC5Zfr1XM
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) November 21, 2023
In a tweet on Monday (20th November), Elon Musk emphasised, “Fraud has both civil and criminal penalties.” He also shared a press release from the Office of the Attorney General of Texas, Ken Paxton.
“Attorney General Paxton was extremely troubled by the allegations that Media Matters, a radical anti-free speech organization, fraudulently manipulated data on X.com (formerly known as Twitter),” the statement read.
“We are examining the issue closely to ensure that the public has not been deceived by the schemes of radical left-wing organisations who would like nothing more than to limit freedom by reducing participation in the public square,” it quoted Attorney General of Texas Ken Paxton as saying.
If you know me, you know I'm committed to truth and fairness. Here's the truth. Not a single authentic user on X saw IBM’s, Comcast’s, or Oracle’s ads next to the content in Media Matters’ article. Only 2 users saw Apple’s ad next to the content, at least one of which was Media…
— Linda Yaccarino (@lindayaX) November 20, 2023
In the meantime, X (formerly Twitter) CEO Linda Yaccarino has rubbished the allegations of anti-Semitism levelled against the company by ‘Media Matters for America.’
“If you know me, you know I’m committed to truth and fairness. Here’s the truth. Not a single authentic user on X saw IBM’s, Comcast’s, or Oracle’s ads next to the content in Media Matters’ article,” she tweeted.
“Only 2 users saw Apple’s ad next to the content, at least one of which was Media Matters. Data wins over manipulation or allegations. Don’t be manipulated. Stand with X,” Yaccarino further added.
The Background of the Controversy
On 16th November, leftist media watchdog ‘Media Matters for America’ published a controversial article, claiming that X (formerly Twitter) was placing advertisements of large companies next to anti-Semitic posts.
In the article, it claimed, “As X owner Elon Musk continues his descent into white nationalist and antisemitic conspiracy theories, his social media platform has been placing ads for major brands like Apple, Bravo (NBCUniversal), IBM, Oracle, and Xfinity (Comcast) next to content that touts Adolf Hitler and his Nazi Party.“
‘Media Matters for America’, which has a history of hounding non-left news organisations such as Fox Corporation, also alleged that X (formerly Twitter) owner Elon Musk supposedly reinstated the accounts of ‘bigots’, ‘pro-Hitler’, ‘paid far-right extremists’, and ‘Holocaust deniers.
The leftist organisation claimed, “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.“
It further alleged that advertisements for companies such as IBM, Apple, Oracle, Bravo, and Xfinity appeared next to ‘pro-Hitler’ and ‘pro-Nazi’ tweets on X (formerly Twitter).
Following the hitjob by ‘Media Matters for America’ on the micro-blogging platform, tech company IBM announced that it has pulled out advertisements from the Elon Musk-owned X.
Several other companies such as Apple, Lions Gate Entertainment, Sony, Disney, Comcast, Warner Bros, and Paramount Global have pulled out advertisements from X in the aftermath of the controversial report by ‘Media Matters for America.’
In a tweet on 18th November, Elon Musk vowed to file a ‘thermonuclear lawsuit’ against the leftist NGO. X (formerly Twitter) also published a statement, exposing the antics of ‘Media Matters for America’ that were designed to portray the micro-blogging platform as ‘anti-Semitic.’
