Elon Musk’s social media platform X has sued a left-leaning stress group that accused the positioning of permitting antisemitic posts subsequent to promoting.
X’s lawsuit alleges that Media Matters for America “manipulated” knowledge in an try to “destroy” the platform previously often called Twitter.
Firms together with Apple, Disney, IBM and Comcast have paused adverts on X for the reason that watchdog launched its evaluation.
After Mr Musk threatened the lawsuit, Media Matters known as him a bully.
The advocacy group stated final week that adverts had appeared on X alongside posts supporting Nazism, equivalent to Hitler quotes and Holocaust denial.
Separately, Mr Musk himself final week was accused of amplifying an antisemitic trope on the platform.
The lawsuit, filed in Texas on Monday, argues: “Media Matters knowingly and maliciously manufactured side-by-side images depicting advertisers’ posts on X Corp’s social media platform beside Neo-Nazi and white-nationalist fringe content and then portrayed these manufactured images as if they were what typical X users experience on the platform.
“Media Matters designed each these photographs and its ensuing media technique to drive advertisers from the platform and destroy X Corp.”
X said in the lawsuit that ads for Comcast, Oracle and IBM had only appeared alongside hateful content for Media Matters, and no other viewer.
Linda Yaccarino, chief executive of X, posted on Monday: “Here’s the reality. Not a single genuine person on X noticed IBM’s, Comcast’s, or Oracle’s adverts subsequent to the content material in Media Matters’ article.”
In the wake of the Media Matters allegations, the European Commission, Warner Bros Discovery, Paramount and Lionsgate have also pulled ad dollars from X.
On Saturday, Mr Musk vowed to file a “thermonuclear” lawsuit against Media Matters, and anyone “who colluded on this fraudulent assault on our firm”.
In response, Media Matters president Angelo Carusone said they would win any legal action.
“Far from the free speech advocate he claims to be, Musk is a bully who threatens meritless lawsuits in an try to silence reporting that he even confirmed is correct,” Mr Carusone stated in a press release.
Founded in 2004, Media Matters is known for its criticism of conservative commentators and media outlets.
It describes itself as a non-profit “progressive analysis and data middle devoted to comprehensively monitoring, analyzing, and correcting conservative misinformation within the US media”.
Last Wednesday, Mr Musk came under fire after he replied to a post sharing a conspiracy theory accusing Jewish communities of pushing hatred against white people, calling it “precise fact”.
The billionaire Tesla and SpaceX entrepreneur later denied antisemitism, saying his comments referred not to all Jewish people, but to groups like the Anti-Defamation League, a Jewish anti-hate monitor.
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Meanwhile, Texas Republican Attorney General Ken Paxton said on Monday that he had opened an investigation into Media Matters “for potential fraudulent exercise” over its allegations about X.
His office released a statement calling the liberal group a “radical anti-free speech group”.
Mr Paxton additionally vowed to make sure that “the general public has not been deceived by the schemes of radical left-wing organizations who would love nothing greater than to restrict freedom by lowering participation within the public sq.”.
Also on Monday the White House announced President Joe Biden would join Threads – the Meta-owned rival to X.
Threads accounts have also been created for the president, first lady, vice-president and second gentleman.
