United States: The International Business Machines Corporation (IBM) has suspended its advertisements for X, formerly known as Twitter, saying its ads were shown next to pro-Nazi posts.
It came as X’s CTO, Mr. Elon Musk, faced criticism for endorsing an antisemitic conspiracy theory in response to a post on the platform.
According to the media watchdog group Media Matters for America, Apple, Oracle, and IBM ads were displayed next to posts praising Adolf Hitler and Nazism on X.
“Elon Musk praises the antisemitic replacement theory that motivated a mass shooting as the “actual truth.” White nationalists are already celebrating,” Media Matters shared on X.
However, X said that it has never intentionally placed ads next to these types of content.
“During all of this Musk-induced chaos, corporate advertisements have also been appearing on pro-Hitler, Holocaust denial, white nationalist, pro-violence, and neo-Nazi accounts,” Media Matters said in a post.
Meanwhile, X’s CEO, Ms. Linda Linda Yaccarino, wrote on X that, “X’s point of view has always been very clear that discrimination by everyone should STOP across the board — I think that’s something we can and should all agree on. When it comes to this platform — X has also been extremely clear about our efforts to combat antisemitism and discrimination. There’s no place for it anywhere in the world — it’s ugly and wrong. Full stop.”
Since Twitter’s takeover, Mr. Musk has been moderating the platform by overseeing content and restoring banned accounts of extremists. Musk has supported Community Notes on X, where users monitor the platform, as a way to fight misinformation, as per the statement.