X Lawsuit Linda Yaccarino/X
Elon Musk just declared war on a number of advertisers, after accusing them of “boycotting” X in a new lawsuit.
In a post on X (because where else), Musk shared an open letter written by Linda Yaccarino, X’s chief executive. In the letter, Yaccarino confirmed the tech giant’s intention to sue the General Alliance of Responsible Media (GARM) after X purportedly lost “billions” in advertising.
“The illegal behavior of these organizations and their executives cost X billions of dollars,” Yaccarino wrote. “People are hurt when the marketplace of ideas is undermined, and some viewpoints are not funded over others as part of an illegal boycott.”
Echoing these sentiments in his quote tweet, Musk wrote: “We tried peace for two years. Now it is war.”
Who is X suing?
GARM is a collective of advertisers, which, according to the New York Times, is responsible for 90% of global advertising spending. When Musk took over X, the coalition encouraged members, including brands like CVS, Unilever, and Mars, to boycott the platform, the legal filing says.
This, the law suit adds, led to 18 GARM members ceasing advertising on the platform, while numerous other advertisers allegedly reduced their spending by 70% or more.
In November 2023, a number of advertisers also withdrew from the site amid concerns about Nazi rhetoric being spread on the site.
However, proving that advertisers are “boycotting” X might be more difficult than Musk anticipates.
In an interview with Sky News, Professor Christine Bartholomew, an anti-trust expert from Buffalo University, said X would need to provide that there is an agreement to boycott joined by each individual advertiser. And even if the case was successful, Musk can’t force companies to advertise on X, she adds.
This means that the war might be over before it even started.
