By IBM Corp. has taken swift action and pulled its ads from X (formerly known as Twitter) following a series of controversial comments by billionaire owner Elon Musk. The company stated that these comments amplify antisemitism, something which IBM has a zero tolerance policy for. In an emailed statement, IBM said, “We have immediately suspended all advertising on X while we investigate this entirely unacceptable situation.”
One of the comments in question was made by Musk on X, where he agreed with an antisemitic conspiracy theory suggesting that Jewish people harbor a “dialectical hatred” towards white people. Musk’s remark in response to the post was, “You have said the actual truth.”
Furthermore, Musk also shared another controversial statement on X, expressing his belief that it is unfair that white people are not allowed to take pride in their own race. This sentiment was echoed in a tweet by a far-right user, which stated, “allowed to be proud of their race.” Musk referred to this tweet, stating, “It was ‘super messed up’.”
The situation worsened when Musk criticized the Jewish advocacy group, the Anti-Defamation League (ADL), saying that they unjustly attack the majority of the West despite the majority supporting Jewish people and Israel.
As a result of these controversial comments, Tesla Inc. has faced backlash, with Tesla bull and investment adviser Ross Gerber receiving messages from clients wanting to disassociate from the company and Elon Musk. Many even mentioned selling their Tesla cars due to this controversy, expressing concern about its impact on the Tesla brand.
This wave of controversy surrounding Elon Musk’s comments comes at a time when digital forums, including X, have been plagued by an increase in antisemitism and hateful misinformation. These issues have resulted in a decline in advertising revenue for X, with Musk revealing that ad revenue has dropped about 50% in the past.
This recent turmoil caused by Musk’s comments is likely to complicate the efforts of X’s Chief Executive Linda Yaccarino, who was specifically hired in June from Comcast Corp.’s NBCUniversal to persuade advertising agencies and major brands to continue supporting or join X.
While Tesla’s shares saw a nearly 4% decline following these events, they still maintain an overall year-to-date increase of approximately 90%.
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