Elon Musk Threatens To Sue Anti-Defamation League, Blames Them for Lost Ad Revenue

X, formerly Twitter, has found its ad revenue to be down by 60%. So, what does owner and CEO Elon Musk do? Blame it on the Anti-Defamation League and threaten to sue the renowned Jewish advocacy group known for fighting antisemitism.

The Anti-Defamation League, or the ADL for short, is a Jewish non-governmental organization that seeks to fight antisemitism and extremism around the world. Since Musk has taken over and focused the company on "free speech" and made it easier to post hate-filled tweets, the ADL has chosen not to advertise on X anymore. Musk claims that other advertisers told him that the organization is pressuring them not to advertise on X as well.

"If this continues, we will have no choice but to file a defamation suit against, ironically, the 'Anti-Defamation' League," the X and Tesla CEO tweeted.

Forbes reported that this came after the ADL released several reports that showed antisemitic posts have gone up the platform since Musk took over.

When he took over, Elon Musk unblocked several users who had been kicked out of Twitter for using hate speech. The new CEO also loosened the platform's content moderation policies and even welcomed back Donald Trump.

Musk has also previously criticized the ADL saying that the group was "so aggressive in their demands to ban social media accounts for even minor infractions" and claimed that they are "ironically the biggest generators of anti-Semitism on this platform!"

However, the group has noted that since he took over, 65 previously banned accounts that were known for anti-Jewish hate speech were back and were posting antisemitic content again. The organization also pointed out 5,000 examples from February 2023 of "virulent antisemitism" posted by 2,173 accounts. These accounts reportedly followed the reinstated accounts.

Anti-Defamation League Reacts to Elon Musk's Criticisms

After Musk tweeted his criticisms of the organization, the ADL told NBC News that it does not comment on legal threats as a matter of policy. An ADL spokesperson then pointed to a response the organization had to a recent #BanTheADL campaign on the platform, which Musk has engaged with.

"Such insidious efforts don't daunt us," said the ADL in a statement. "Instead, they drive us to be unflinching in our commitment to fight hate in all its forms and ensure the safety of Jewish communities and other marginalized groups."

Insiders are also stating that advertisers are pulling out of X due to the changes that Musk brought about. As for Musk, he continually blames "activist groups" for attempting to "destroy free speech in America."

Former Employees Suing Elon Musk

While Musk is contemplating suing the Anti-Defamation League, he is also getting sued by his own former employees. Specifically, they are suing X, and the company is facing 2,200 arbitration claims from them.

Among these claims include one from Chris Woodfield, a former senior network engineer at Twitter. He claimed that Twitter failed to pay his severance. Other employees are claiming the same cases, with the company not paying their severance and also failing to pay the fees required for the JAMS arbitration system.

This article is owned by Latin Post.

Written by: Rick Martin

WATCH: Anti-Defamation League CEO on concerns of disinformation and hate speech in A.I. - CNBC