X, formerly Twitter, has followed through with owner Elon Musk’s threat to sue the left-leaning nonprofit Media Matters, The Verge reported. Media Matters reported last week that X “has been placing ads for major brands” like Apple and IBM “next to content that touts Adolf Hitler and his Nazi Party.”
According to The Verge, Musk and X CEO Linda Yaccarino have dubbed the report unrepresentative of X’s general user experience. Several companies nonetheless pulled ads after that report and Musk’s direct endorsement of an antisemitic conspiracy theory – and Musk’s lawsuit claims Media Matters is legally liable for X’s loss.
Neither Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, nor X argues that Media Matters was falsely claiming to see ads on pro-Nazi content. In fact, the suit confirms that the screenshots the organization posted are real. But it alleges the organization “manipulated” the service to make X serve the offending ads.
The lawsuit accuses Media Matters of interference with contract, business, disparagement and interference with prospective economic advantage – claims that could be difficult to prove given the First Amendment’s high bar for legally prosecuting speech, The Verge reported.
“We are going to continue our work undeterred. If he sues us, we will win,” Media Matters president Angelo Carsone told The Verge in a previous statement, saying that “Elon Musk has spent the last few days making meritless legal threats, elevating bizarre conspiracy theories, and lobbing vicious personal attacks against his ‘enemies’ online.”
The Hill reported that Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton (R) said Monday that his office is opening an investigation into Media Matters for America over its recent reports accusing X, the platform formerly known as Twitter, of placing ads for mainstream brands next to pro-Nazi and white nationalist content.
According to The Hill, Paxton’s office said it is investigating the liberal media watchdog group for “potential fraudulent activity” after X sued Media Matters in federal court in Texas, alleging it “manipulated the algorithms” on the platform in order to produce the reports and “alienate advertisers.”
Media Matters initially released a report Thursday saying that it had found ads for companies including Apple, Bravo, Oracle, Xfinity and IBM next to posts on X celebrating Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party, The Hill reported. In a follow up report on Friday, the watchdog said it had also found ads for Amazon, NBA Mexico, NBCUniversal Catalyst, Action Network and Club for Growth next to posts featuring white nationalist hashtags.
CNBC reported the National Football League is sticking with X, formerly known as Twitter, as Elon Musk’s site faces an advertiser revolt over hate speech and antisemitism on the platform.
According to CNBC, the NFL has partnered with the platform since 2013 as part of an effort to bring fans exclusive content.
Since Musk took over last fall, the platform has been caught up in several controversies, including those surrounding X’s policy for moderating harmful content.
In my opinion, the correct thing to do, when discovering that antisemitic and Nazi content is on your platform, is to actively remove that content. Filing a lawsuit in an effort to stifle what Media Matters found indicates Musk is not interested in cleaning up X at all.