White House condemns Elon Musk for spreading repugnant antisemitic falsehood

The White House has accused Elon Musk, the owner of X, of spreading a false and derogatory statement about Jewish people. This accusation came after Musk responded positively to an antisemitic post on the platform, referring to it as "actual truth." Musk, however, denies that the post contained antisemitic content. Nonetheless, a White House spokesperson condemned Musk's endorsement of the post, describing it as "unacceptable." The post Musk responded to was related to a conspiracy theory that inspired the perpetrator of the 2018 Pittsburgh synagogue shooting, in which 11 people lost their lives. The theory suggests that Jewish communities actively promote immigration of non-white individuals to Western countries in order to eliminate the white race, a concept known as "white genocide." Musk clarified that his comment referred specifically to groups like the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) and other unidentified "Jewish communities," rather than all Jewish people. In response, the ADL's Chief Executive voiced concerns over the validation and promotion of antisemitic theories during a time of increasing antisemitism globally. The controversy surrounding antisemitism on X comes as some organizations have halted their advertising on the platform due to the presence of extremist content. IBM, for example, stopped its ad spending on X after ads were placed alongside posts praising Adolf Hitler and Nazism. X has stated that ads are not intentionally placed next to extremist content and that accounts promoting Nazi ideology will not receive advertising revenue. The platform also mentions that specific posts will be labeled as "sensitive media." In addition to the antisemitism controversy, the European Commission reportedly requested its departments to refrain from purchasing ads on X due to concerns over misinformation and the Israel-Hamas conflict. Musk has been known to endorse conspiracy theories on multiple occasions and has spoken out against social media watchdogs, including the ADL. X claims to have more robust brand safety control measures compared to other platforms and asserts that hate speech and extremism have decreased on its platform despite downsizing its safety team. However, external groups challenge this assessment, arguing that under Musk's leadership, extremism and hate speech have actually increased. Musk previously threatened to sue the ADL for allegedly falsely accusing him and X of being antisemitic, but no legal action has been taken yet. X has, however, filed a lawsuit against the Center for Countering Digital Hate, a research and campaign group. The CCDH has moved for dismissal of the X lawsuit, claiming it is an attempt to suppress speech and silence opposing voices.