According to a report from Axios, Apple has stopped advertising on X (formerly known as Twitter), a social media platform owned by Elon Musk. Reportedly, the Cupertino-based tech giant has taken this step after a group of 164 “Jewish Leaders” accused Elon of supporting an alleged antisemitic post on the social media platform and asked big tech companies around the globe to “stop funneling money onto X” as they claim that “antisemitism explodes on the platform,” under a campaign called XOutHate.
Last week, Elon Musk replied to a post on X saying “You have said the actual truth.” According to XOutHate, Elon’s reply shows “implicit support for Nazism.” The statement put up by the group on their website further accuses Elon of the following: “None of this is surprising: Musk has been spreading antisemitism now for years. What is surprising is how many tech companies and leaders are still willing to do business with him. Tim Cook, CEO of Apple, has doubled down on his support for Elon Musk. Google has deepened its relationship with X by partnering with them on ads.”
On a similar note, a recent report from Media Matters For America claimed “X has been placing ads for Apple, Bravo, IBM, Oracle, and Xfinity next to pro-Nazi content.” An X executive told Axios “The X system is not intentionally placing a brand actively next to this type of content, nor is a brand actively trying to support this type of content with an ad placement.” According to the executive, X “did a sweep on the accounts that Media Matters found and they will [no] longer be monetizable” and that the posts that the publication highlighted will be labeled “Sensitive Media.”
CEO of X shares the view of the platform on the matter
The report from Media Matters For America came out on the same day Elon Musk made the controversial post on the social media platform. A day later, Linda Yaccarino, the CEO of X, put out a post saying “X’s point of view has always been very clear that discrimination by everyone should STOP across the board — I think that's something we can and should all agree on. When it comes to this platform — X has also been extremely clear about our efforts to combat antisemitism and discrimination. There's no place for it anywhere in the world — it's ugly and wrong. Full stop.”
Elon Musk defends himself
Earlier today, Elon too defended himself and his controversial post saying “This past week, there were hundreds of bogus media stories claiming that I am antisemitic. Nothing could be further from the truth. I wish only the best for humanity and a prosperous and exciting future for all.” Prior to this, the group asked Amazon, Apple, Disney, and “other large advertisers” to “stop funding X through their ad spend.” They also asked Apple and Google to “remove X from their respective app stores, per their own rules.” So far, Apple hasn’t commented on the matter.
