Ibm, Apple, Disney e Lionsgate they distance themselves from X e they stop advertising on the platform. The casus belli was triggered by the owner of the former Twitter, Elon Muskcommenting on an anti-Semitic message posted on social media. “You told the truth”wrote the billionaire entrepreneur in response to a post which stated that “Jewish communities are pushing the same type of dialectic as hatred against white people who want it not to be used against them.”
After some comments, the entrepreneur clarified that the principle “does not extend to all Jewish communities, but is not limited only to the Anti Defamation League (international Jewish non-governmental organization based in the USA, ed). At the risk of being repetitive, I am deeply offended by messages from the ADL and other groups that push de facto anti-white or anti-Asian racism, or racism of any form.” There White House condemned “in the harshest terms” what he called a “repugnant promotion of anti-Semitism and racist hatred, contrary to our values”.
IBM protested by suspending its advertising spots: “We have zero tolerance towards hate speech and discrimination, and we immediately suspended all advertising on for spots on the platform in the last three months of the year. In the face of rampant misinformation too the European executive recommended that all its executive services “temporarily suspend advertising on X until further notice, to avoid risk of damage to the Commission’s reputation”. In the following hours other large groups queued up.
In an attempt to stem internal criticism and the flight of advertisers, Linda Yaccarino, CEO of X, had to take action: “We are a platform for everyone” and “discrimination by anyone must stop”. But now the omelette was done. Musk with his apparent support for the “grand replacement theory” (the far-right idea based on the belief that minorities are replacing whites) appears to have crossed the line this time. Especially while the war between Israel and Hamas is ongoing. His position clashes with the conciliatory attitude displayed towards the Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu met in September, when controversy over the proliferation of hate speech on X was already skyrocketing. “Obviously I am against anti-Semitism. Freedom of speech sometimes means saying something that others don’t like. We will not promote hate speech,” Musk said.