Key advertisers are not just pausing their paid ad campaigns on X (formerly Twitter), but they are reportedly walking away from the Elon Musk-owned social media platform.
A considerable number of prominent media brands have stopped posting on X altogether, ditching the once crucial website that was lauded as the world's "digital town square".
It's been a few days since the flagship accounts belonging to big brands like Discovery, Warner Bros., Universal, Sony Pictures, Lionsgate, Paramount and Disney shared a post on X, following Musk's perceived endorsement of an antisemitic conspiracy theory.
While the 52-year-old billionaire still hasn't apologised for supporting the controversial post, he has filed a lawsuit against Media Matters over its report accusing X of allowing antisemitic posts to appear next to ads.
In its response to Musk's lawsuit threat, Media Matters branded the Tesla CEO "a bully". Furthermore, the media watchdog noted that Musk is far from the free speech advocate he claims to be.
Ongoing crisis for X (Twitter)
The media companies, on the other hand, are still mum on their decision to stop posting on X. However, a CNN report citing people familiar with the social media strategies of Paramount and WBD claims the companies have made the active decision to discontinue posting under certain handles on the website due to concerns like brand safety.
Dear @elonmusk
— Andy (@AndySolskjaer99) November 27, 2023
This ad is financial fraud. I reported it already last week, yet it still shows on my feed. It's because of things like this Twitter (sorry @x) is targeted by @EUCouncil is targetting this plattform and advertisers are leaving. You don't protect its users. pic.twitter.com/k63aNZlNQc
Aside from these companies' corporate accounts, the most high-profile accounts affiliated with Disney, including @StarWars, @Pixar, and @MarvelStudios have stopped posting on X. To those unaware, these accounts, which have millions of followers, were previously posting multiple times a day on the platform.
Rubbing salt into the wound, these brands have now started actively posting on X rival Threads. For instance, "The Late Show With Stephen Colbert" took to the Meta-owned platform to share the news that host Stephen Colbert will not be making an appearance this week due to appendicitis.
Colbert's show was active on X prior to the controversy over the antisemitic post. There are no prizes for guessing that the loss of these media behemoths must be setting off alarm bells inside X.
Currently, the social media company is not only starved of advertising revenue but also starved of content. Notably, content from these popular brands has played a vital role in making X one of the most influential social media platforms.
Nevertheless, there is a possibility these companies will eventually start posting and advertising on X again. In the meantime, if more companies, notable figures and big brands continue to abandon Musk's platform for other social media networks, X could lose the lustre it once had.
"Every day, more brands are waking up to the reality that Twitter is dead and X is a cesspool," Platformer's Casey Newton said. "The global town square is now dispersed across many different platforms, and increasingly the most relevant conversations are taking place elsewhere," he added.
