Social Network X Sues Media Matters After Major Brands Stop Advertising

Earlier, on November 16, the organization Media Matters published a report stating that advertisements of a series of famous brands in the US on social network X appeared to be displayed next to inflammatory and hateful content such as anti-Semitism and support for Nazis. The famous brands mentioned above include IBM Corporation and major media companies in the world such as Disney, Paramount, NBCUniversal, Comcast, Discovery, Lionsgate and Warner Bros.

Following this report, the above companies said they had stopped advertising on social network X. Specifically, since last week, IBM Corporation, Comcast and its subsidiary NBCUniversal said they had stopped advertising on social network X.

In a lawsuit filed in Texas, Company X claims that Media Matters “manipulated” social media by using accounts that were specifically targeted at accounts that primarily posted fringe content for brands. According to the lawsuit, Media Matters’ reporting misrepresented the user experience on social media with the intent of damaging X’s reputation and business. Company X argues that ads for IBM, Comcast, and Oracle were only shown alongside inflammatory and hateful content on Media Matters’ own accounts.

Ms. Linda Yaccarino - CEO of company X called on users not to let their accounts be controlled and called for their support for X. In addition, Ms. Yaccarino affirmed that company X has long been working to fight against anti-Semitic and discriminatory content.

Media Matters has not yet commented on the lawsuit. Earlier, in an interview with Reuters, Media Matters President Angelo Carusone said that the results of the organization's report showed inconsistencies in X's previous statements that the social network had taken safety measures to prevent ads from appearing next to inflammatory and hateful content.

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton said on November 20 that his office is opening an investigation into the Media Matters report. Paxton also expressed concern over the company's allegations that Media Matters controlled data on social network X.

Social media platform X (formerly Twitter) has lost about half of its advertising revenue since billionaire Elon Musk bought it for $44 billion last October. Since then, Mr. Musk has implemented a number of reforms such as limiting the number of posts and cutting staff. The changes in X's operations that Mr. Musk made after the acquisition have turned users and advertisers away from the social media platform.