Staff Reports
A surprising turn of events is that top advertising executives are allegedly putting pressure on Linda Yaccarino, the CEO of X/Twitter, to step down after Elon Musk supported an antisemitic post. Because of this change, big companies have cut back on their advertising spending by a lot.
Breitbart News says that tech giant IBM and the EU have stopped ads on X/Twitter, which is owned by billionaire Elon Musk. More and more people are worried about the amount of pro-Nazi and other "hate speech" on the platform, so this choice was made. Because these groups think Musk's controversial tweets support racist conspiracy theories, they have stopped advertising with him.
Advertising Execs Call on X/Twitter CEO Linda Yaccarino to Resign in Wake of Latest Musk Controversy https://t.co/ylSnhJLoQ3 pic.twitter.com/dcKDLan4Sw
— Tommy Robinson News (@TRobinsonNews) November 20, 2023
The trouble started when Musk seemed to agree with a tweet that promoted the "great replacement" conspiracy theory and made negative comments about Jewish neighborhoods. Musk shocked everyone by saying, "You have said the actual truth," instead of condemning such hurtful statements. This caused a huge uproar.
Forbes now reports that powerful advertising executives are putting pressure on X/Twitter CEO Linda Yaccarino, questioning her decision to stay in her job and suggesting that she step down as a strong statement against racism and antisemitism. A watchdog group called Media Matters found that ads from big companies like IBM and Amazon were showing up next to material that promoted Nazism and white nationalism. This put more pressure on Yaccarino.
Advertisers have been very angry, and big names like Apple, Disney, and IBM have also taken their ads off of Twitter. Even the White House has spoken out against Elon Musk's comments, which shows how serious the situation is.
In answer to the backlash, Yaccarino wrote on Twitter that the site would not stand for discrimination or antisemitism. But in her comments, she didn't address the specific worries about Musk's support for hateful content. The calls for her removal have grown stronger because of her silence.
Yaccarino had promised earlier to make Twitter a better and more advertiser-friendly site by adding features like "Sensitivity Settings," but it looks like her plans have not come together as planned. There is more and more pressure on Yaccarino, and it is still unclear whether she will stay in her job or step down.
