In a surprising turn of events, X’s owner, Elon Musk, has announced his intention to file a defamation lawsuit against the Anti-Defamation League (ADL), alleging that the nonprofit organization’s claims of rising hate speech on the social media platform have caused a significant drop in advertising revenue. Musk’s allegations have further fueled an ongoing controversy surrounding his tenure as the head of X, formerly known as Twitter.
Musk took to the platform on October 2022, asserting that X’s U.S. advertising revenue remains “down 60%, primarily due to pressure on advertisers by @ADL (that’s what advertisers tell us), so they almost succeeded in killing X/Twitter!” He also accused the ADL of attempting to tarnish both the platform’s and his own reputation by falsely labeling them as anti-Semitic.
“To clear our platform’s name on the matter of anti-Semitism, it looks like we have no choice but to file a defamation lawsuit against the Anti-Defamation League. Oh, the irony!” Musk declared in his post.
The ADL has chosen not to comment on the legal threat as a matter of policy. However, it was revealed that the organization recently engaged with X’s leadership, including CEO Linda Yaccarino, whom Musk appointed to address the decline in ad revenue. Following their meeting last week, Yaccarino publicly thanked ADL CEO Jonathan Greenblatt, emphasizing the importance of “good intentions and candor” in building a productive partnership.
Simultaneously, Musk, as the platform’s owner, has shown support for a #BanTheADL campaign gaining traction on X. The ADL has accused Musk of “lifting” this campaign. The organization stated that the ADL is unsurprised yet undeterred that antisemites, white supremacists, conspiracy theorists, and other trolls have launched a coordinated attack on our organization. This type of thing is nothing new.”
However, both the ADL and similar organizations, such as the Center for Countering Digital Hate (CCDH), have reported a significant increase in hate speech on the platform under Musk’s leadership. The CCDH found that daily usage of racial slurs has tripled compared to 2022 averages, while slurs against gay men and trans individuals have increased by 58% and 62%, respectively. The ADL’s separate report noted both a rise in antisemitic content and a decrease in the moderation of such posts.
Musk, in May, dismissed these reports from watchdog groups as “utterly false.” He claimed that “hate speech impressions,” or the number of times a tweet containing hate speech has been viewed, have continued to decline since he assumed control of the company. He argued that the initial spike in hate speech was designed to test his tolerance.
Despite Musk’s defense, two brands recently paused their advertising spending on X after their ads appeared alongside an account promoting Nazism. X responded by suspending the account, stating that ad impressions on the page were minimal.
Last month, Musk also filed a lawsuit against the CCDH, accusing the nonprofit group of deliberately pushing advertisers away from the platform by publishing critical reports about X’s response to hateful content. Musk specifically alleged that the CCDH violated the platform’s terms of service and federal hacking laws by scraping data and encouraging an unnamed individual to collect information improperly.
In response, CCDH’s CEO, Imran Ahmed, called Musk’s lawsuit a “conspiracy theory” and asserted that Musk’s own approach as CEO played a significant role in the platform’s increase in hate and disinformation. Ahmed stated, “He put up the bat signal to racists and misogynists, to homophobes, to antisemites, saying, ‘Twitter is now a free-speech platform.’ … And now he’s surprised when people are able to quantify that there has been a resulting increase in hate and disinformation.”
As the controversy continues to unfold, the impending defamation lawsuit against the ADL adds another layer of complexity to the ongoing debate over free speech, moderation, and responsibility on social media platforms.