Musk lashes out at advertisers, says 'Go F * Yourself'
What's the story
"Go. F***. Yourself!"
Yes, that's what Elon Musk, the owner of social media platform X, said while speaking at the 2023 DealBook Summit in New York on Wednesday.
His outburst was in response to advertisers boycotting X over his sharing of antisemitic posts on the platform.
Musk called out companies like Disney, Apple, and Comcast for halting their campaigns on X.
He accused companies that have joined an ad boycott of X of trying to blackmail him with money.
Details
He singled out Disney CEO Bob Iger
In response to the advertising boycott, Musk said, "If somebody's gonna try to blackmail me with advertising? Blackmail me with money? Go f*** yourself. Go. F***. Yourself. Is that clear?"
In his outburst, he singled out Disney's CEO Bob Iger, who spoke at the summit earlier in the day.
He said, "Go. F***. Yourself. Is that clear? Hey Bob, if you're in the audience, that's how I feel."
Twitter Post
Watch Musk lashing out at the advertisers
Elon to advertisers who bail on twitter because of his tweets. “Go. Fuck. Yourself.”pic.twitter.com/ZUidKO6I1Z
— X News Daily (@xDaily) November 29, 2023
Insights
'Advertisers might kill X'
Musk also said that advertisers could kill X. "What this advertising boycott is going to do is it's going to kill the company," he said.
He also hinted that his fans would boycott those advertisers in return.
"The whole world will know those advertisers killed the company, and we will document it in great detail," Musk said.
Despite the backlash and advertising boycott, Musk remains defiant, stating, "I have no problem being hated. Hate away."
What Next?
Apology for antisemitic post and impact on X
Musk apologized for his controversial post, which the White House called "antisemitic and racist hate."
It is "one of the most foolish if not the most foolish thing I've ever done on the platform," he said. "I'm sorry for that tweet or post."
Musk's inflammatory posts have led to major advertisers suspending campaigns on X and some famous users, like Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo, leaving the platform.
Ad revenue on X has reportedly dropped by 50% since the boycott started.
Insights
X's legal battle with Media Matters
The advertising boycott isn't just because of Musk's post; many advertisers had already chosen to spend their money elsewhere.
A report by liberal pressure group Media Matters claimed to have found evidence that some ads had been placed next to Nazi content on X.
In response, X has filed a lawsuit against Media Matters, accusing the group of misrepresenting the real user experience of X to undermine freedom of speech and mislead advertisers.
Facts
Musk's visit to Israel and future plans
Amid the controversy, Musk visited Israel, met with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and offered to help "deradicalize" and "rebuild" Gaza.
Musk explained that the trip was planned before his tweets, and were not part of an "apology tour."
Previously, Musk had expressed interest in bringing SpaceX's satellite communications service, Starlink, to the region and specifically to humanitarian organizations in Gaza.