Elon Musk’s controversial posts with anti-Semitic undertones could cost him dearly: The losses in advertising revenue for the microblogging service X (formerly Twitter) are higher than the company admits.
X could face up to $75 million in losses this year, as revealed by internal documents obtained by the New York Times.
The documents reportedly originate from the company’s sales team. They document the impact of all ad cancellations this month and extrapolate the potential year-end losses if advertisers don’t return.
The team has listed over 200 companies in the document. Among them are renowned names like Airbnb, Amazon, Coca-Cola, and Microsoft. A number of these companies have already ceased advertising on X, while others are contemplating following suit, as speculated by the X sales team.
Following Musk’s controversial posts, major advertisers halted their campaigns, notably IBM, followed by Apple and Disney. Film studios Warner Bros, Paramount, Lionsgate, and Sony also joined in.
Subsequently, the company filed a lawsuit against the nonprofit organization Media Matters. Allegations suggest that Media Matters deliberately manipulated ad placements of prominent companies alongside Nazi-related content and anti-Semitic remarks.
X stated that the information referenced by the New York Times is outdated or merely internal assessments to gauge risks. The company mentioned potential advertising revenue losses of $11 million, though an exact figure is yet to be determined due to some advertisers returning to X and others increasing their spending.
According to the New York Times, X’s US advertising revenue has dropped by nearly 60 percent since Elon Musk acquired Twitter in October 2022.
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