Elon Musk has declared "war" on multiple advertisers after Republicans claimed they uncovered a secret illegal boycott against several companies, including X.
"We tried being nice for 2 years and got nothing but empty words," Musk wrote on X Tuesday, announcing the social media platform's move to file an antitrust lawsuit against the companies. "Now, it is war."
Musk's post was in response to the U.S. House of Representatives Judiciary Committee's scathing report titled "GARM's (Global Alliance for Responsible Media) Harm," according to X CEO Linda Yaccarino.
The report accused GARM of helping to dissuade advertisers from promoting content after Musk bought X, formerly known as Twitter in 2022, according to the Associated Press. Advertisers allegedly broke away from the platform over concerns of antisemitic content on the website, costing the company billions of dollars in revenue.
A Message to X Users pic.twitter.com/6bZOYPhWVa
— Linda Yaccarino (@lindayaX) August 6, 2024
"Evidence obtained by the Committee shows that GARM and its members directly organized boycotts and used other indirect tactics to target disfavored platforms, content creators, and news organizations in an effort to demonetize and, in effect, limit certain choices for consumers," Yaccarino also wrote in an open letter to advertisers Tuesday.
Yaccarino alleged the "intent" of the boycott was to "deprive" users of the platform's global town square.
"To put it simply, people are hurt when the marketplace of ideas is undermined and some viewpoints are not funded over others as part of an illegal boycott," she said, in part. "This behavior is a stain on a great industry, and cannot be allowed to continue."
In addition to GARM, X also named the World Federation of Advertisers (WFA), and GARM members CVS Health, Mars, Orsted and Unilever, in its lawsuit, according to Yaccarino.
"This is not a decision we took lightly, but it is a direct consequence of their actions," she alleged.
"The evidence and facts are on our side," Yaccarino added in a video statement. "They conspire to boycott X, which threatens our ability to thrive in the future that puts your global town square – the one place that you can express yourself freely and openly – at long term risk. People are hurt when the marketplace of ideas is constricted. No small group of people should be able to monopolize what gets monetized. You deserve an open platform where your views can be expressed without restriction and without fear."
