Apple stops advertising on X amid rising concerns about antisemitism on the platform following Elon Musk’s support for a controversial post.
X (formerly Twitter) has once again found itself in troubled waters courtesy its billionaire owner, Elon Musk. Ever since the Israel-Hamas conflict began, the social media platform has been filled with hate posts, propaganda, and misinformation. But recently, brands have pulled the plug on advertising on the platform citing antisemitism as a big reason. Recently, IBM, Disney, Warner Bros., Discovery, and EU pulled ads, and now Apple has joined the list as well, as per a report. Incidentally, the big chunk of the advertisers exiting came after company owner Elon Musk replied in support of a post accusing Jewish people of hating white people.
According to a report by Axios, Apple stopped showing ads on the platform because Elon Musk endorsed “antisemitic conspiracy theories,” and Apple’s ads were displayed alongside posts spreading ‘far-right’ political ideologies. Disney, Warner Bros., Discovery, Paramount, and ComCast also pulled ads from X, citing concerns about their ads appearing next to content promoting hate speech and extremist views.
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Apple joins others in pulling ads off X
Apple’s decision to withdraw from the list of advertisers on X is raising concerns for the platform. According to a report by The Verge, Apple has been one of the largest spenders on X, regularly purchasing ads to promote new products and acquiring custom “hashflag” emoji animations for high-profile events.
In September, Apple CEO Tim Cook discussed the company’s relationship with X in an interview with CBS Sunday Morning. He mentioned, “There are some things about it I don’t like” and pointed out antisemitism as a significant concern. While he stated that Apple is continuously assessing whether to advertise on X, no decision to halt advertising was made at that time.