Elon Musk, the wealthiest man in the world and owner of X/Twitter, has lashed out at advertisers who withdrew their spending from his social network. Musk claims that companies are trying to “blackmail” him with money, telling former advertisers “go fuck yourself. Is that clear? I hope it is.”
Variety reports that Elon Musk’s recent outburst at the New York Times’ DealBook Summit has once again made headlines as the Tesla CEO and X/Twitter owner attacked advertisers for pulling their ads from his social media network. Following Musk’s alleged endorsement of an antisemitic conspiracy theory on X/Twitter, several major advertisers, including Disney, IBM, Warner Bros. Discovery, Sony, Comcast, NBCUniversal, and Lionsgate, suspended their ad spending.
.@elonmusk to corporations pulling ads from X:
“Don’t advertise. If someone is going to try to blackmail me with advertising, blackmail me with money, go fuck yourself. Go fuck yourself. Is that clear? I hope it is.” pic.twitter.com/GuhIHWjei9
— Greg Price (@greg_price11) November 29, 2023
Discussing his reply to the post, Musk stated: “I should have not replied to that particular person… I essentially handed a loaded gun to those who hate me,” adding that the reply was one of the “most foolish” posts he has ever made on the platform. In an attempt to explain his reply, Musk said: “What I was saying was that it’s unwise to support groups that want your annihilation,” adding that he was far from antisemitic: “If anything, I am Philo-Semitic.”
At the summit, he addressed advertisers that have cut off their relationship with X/Twitter, stating: “Go fuck yourself… Go. Fuck. Yourself. Is that clear?” He also accused these advertisers of trying to “blackmail” the company and potentially driving it into bankruptcy.
The situation is further complicated by a lawsuit filed by X/Twitter against Media Matters, alleging a “blatant smear campaign” against Musk and X using manipulated research. The lawsuit, along with perceived damage control moves like visiting Israel have not moved the needle with major advertisers who have paused their spending on the platform.
Earlier at the DealBrook Summit, Disney CEO Bob Iger commented on the company’s decision to pull ads from the platform, stating: “I have a lot of respect for Elon and what he has accomplished.” However, given “the position [Musk] took, in quite a public manner,” Disney decided that its relationship with X/Twitter was “not necessarily a positive one for us.”
Read more at Variety here.
Lucas Nolan is a reporter for Breitbart News covering issues of free speech and online censorship.