“Media Giants Apple, Disney, and Others Halt Advertising on X Following Elon Musk’s Support of Antisemitic Tweet”
Apple, Disney, Warner Bros Discovery, Paramount Global, Lions Gate Entertainment, and Comcast have halted their online advertising campaigns on X (formerly Twitter).
This action was prompted after Elon Musk voiced agreement with a social media post that accused “Jewish communities” of inciting “hatred against whites.” Following Musk’s statement, these major companies decided to suspend their promotional activities on the platform, according to sources familiar with their decisions.
Reports surfaced citing Apple’s move first by Axios and Disney’s by The New York Times. Media Matters for America recently identified several prominent companies, including IBM, Bravo, Oracle, and Infinity, whose ads were displayed alongside content praising Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party.
Responding to this revelation, IBM swiftly suspended its online ad campaigns on X, emphasizing its strong stance against hate speech and discrimination.
Notably, Apple, Disney, and Oracle remained silent in response to requests for comments on these developments.
Concurrently, a coalition comprising 163 Jewish leaders, activists, and academics from diverse political affiliations issued a statement urging businesses like Disney, Apple, and Amazon to cease funding X through their advertising expenditure.
This call follows Musk’s previous insinuation about filing a defamation lawsuit against the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) and his recent controversial posts on X.
Despite criticism from ADL CEO Jonathan Greenblatt and the ongoing concerns raised by various groups, the advertising activities of these major corporations on the platform have not ceased, raising alarm among those monitoring the rise of antisemitism online.
The White House also publicly rebuked Musk for his tweets, with spokesperson Andrew Bates denouncing the propagation of an antisemitic lie that was associated with the tragic mass shooting at the Tree of Life Synagogue in Pittsburgh in 2018, where 11 individuals lost their lives. Bates emphasized that it is unacceptable to perpetuate such heinous falsehoods at any time.
