Elon Musk shared a very simple message to advertisers leaving his social media platform. During an interview, the billionaire told X's fleeing ad partners to "go f*** yourself."
Although his message only has three words, Musk's statement clearly shows how serious X's advertising issues are. The tech executive talked about X's advertisers on Wednesday, Nov. 29. He said other things at the New York Times' DealBook Summit.
Elon Musk's Simple Message to X's Fleeing Advertisers is 'Go F*** Yourself'
Tesla and SpaceX's CEO Elon Musk during an in-conversation event with British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak at Lancaster House on November 2, 2023 in London, England. Sunak discussed AI with Elon Musk in a conversation that is played on the social network X, which Musk owns.
During the DealBook Summit, Elon Musk talked about what he thinks about advertisers leaving X because of his recent antisemitic X post issue. CNN Business reported that the billionaire apologized for what he did, calling his post agreeing to the antisemitic content the "dumbest" one he ever posted.
However, he lashed out at advertising partners who left and were about to leave X just because of it. Elon Musk said that if advertisers are so worried about his conduct on X, they should stop spending on social media.
"If someone is going to try and blackmail me with advertising? Blackmail me with money? Go f*ck yourself. Go f*ck yourself," said the tech executive via The Wired.
He didn't stop there. Elon even mentioned Disney CEO Bob Iger, saying that if he was in the audience, he should know what the billionaire felt about Disney's decision to pause its advertisements on X.
Musk made his surprising remarks after X CEO Linda Yaccarino reassured advertisers and users that the social media company is against antisemitism and other harmful beliefs or activities against all kinds of groups.
Can X Survive Without Advertisers?
Elon Musk's statements show that the billionaire is confident its platform will survive without advertisers against his activities on X. However, experts said advertisers' spending is critical for X to strive as a social media platform. Some even claimed that Musk's negative remarks about Iger indicate he is angry with Disney for pulling its funds out of X.
Aside from Disney, other giant firms also left Elon Musk's social media platform because of his previous antisemitic issue. These include Discovery, IBM, Paramount Global, Lionsgate, EU, Apple, Comcast, and Warner Bros.
As of writing, this trend is a sign that other advertisers and small money might soon leave X and find other opportunities elsewhere.
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