SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA: In a bold move against Media Matters and its president Angelo Carusone, X (formerly Twitter) is gearing up for a legal battle, with prominent figures like Megyn Kelly coming to Elon Musk's defense.
Media Matters' allegations and advertiser exodus
The clash stems from Media Matters' allegations that major brands' ads appeared next to antisemitic content on the social media platform, leading to a wave of advertisers withdrawing from the website.
Carusone, known for his criticism of Musk's takeover of X in 2022, accuses Musk of steering the platform towards becoming a hub for hate speech rather than enforcing reasonable controls. He has actively called on advertisers to disassociate from X if Musk continues what he perceives as a "radicalization" of the platform.
The controversy escalated when Media Matters published a report claiming that ads for well-known brands were placed alongside posts promoting Nazism. This prompted IBM, Comcast, and other advertisers to pull their ads from X, intensifying the scrutiny on Musk's leadership.
Linda Yaccarino, X's chief executive, reassured employees that the company is committed to combating antisemitism and discrimination. However, Carusone disputed these claims, arguing that the system X said would prevent ads from appearing next to harmful content is not functioning as promised.
"If you search for white nationalist content, there are ads flourishing. The system they say exists is not operating as such," he said.
Musk retaliated on Saturday, November 18, announcing a "thermonuclear" lawsuit against Media Matters and others involved in what he termed a "fraudulent attack" on X.
Megyn Kelly voices support for Elon Musk
Notable personalities, including Megyn Kelly, voiced their support for Musk, with Kelly accusing Media Matters of having a "goal" to get conservatives fired. She highlighted her own experiences with Media Matters.
"Since I joined Fox and started coming up, they would take anything and everything I said completely out of context, try to spin it into a controversy, and then try to get me fired," Kelly began.
"I mean, over and over and over and over my entire career... including when I went to NBC. They pushed and pushed and pushed anything that I said that they could make controversial all over the internet," she continued.
"Their sole goal is to get conservatives fired, to get anybody right of center fired, ruined, canceled. That's what they exist for."
"I cannot believe that these big blue chip companies are jumping when Media Matters says jump. Are they so clueless they don't understand it that this is a hack organization, that you can't trust anything this group does?" she asked.
Amid the legal threats and media frenzy, Carusone countered Musk's narrative, asserting that Musk is not the free speech advocate he claims to be but rather a "bully" trying to silence accurate reporting.
"Far from the free speech advocate he claims to be, Musk is a bully who threatens meritless lawsuits in an attempt to silence reporting that he even confirmed is accurate. Musk admitted the ads at issue ran alongside the pro-Nazi content we identified," Carusone alleged.
X responded to the controversy by restricting the accounts found posting antisemitic material, preventing them from generating income and labeling specific posts as "sensitive media."
Musk, however, continued to label Media Matters as an "evil organization," even drawing criticism from the White House after he agreed with a post on X that falsely claimed Jewish people were stoking hatred against White people.
Social media reactions
Social media was inundated with reactions, with many thanking Kelly for standing with Musk.
"Glad to see you stand with Elon. If we don't stand up now...when will we?" one posted on X.
"Thank you @megynkelly! We stand with X and @elonmusk!" another wrote.
"These vile scumbags must be taken down in court. So happy they’ve messed with the wrong person," someone else offered.
"THEY will fall in the end!! Thanks for your support Megyn!" another added.
