Elon Musk and his social media company X, formerly Twitter, have filed a lawsuit against several major advertisers, alleging an illegal boycott that has significantly impacted the company’s finances. The lawsuit follows a House Judiciary Committee report that exposed the World Federation of Advertisers (WFA) and its subsidiary, the Global Alliance for Responsible Media (GARM).
The report, titled “GARM’s Harm,” outlines how the WFA, which controls a staggering 90% of global marketing spending, coordinated a boycott against X. This group represents major companies like Disney and Coca-Cola and allegedly used its influence to harm X financially.
X CEO Linda Yaccarino announced the lawsuit in a post on X, expressing her shock at the findings. “I thought I had seen everything,” she remarked. “The illegal behavior of these organizations and their executives cost X billions of dollars.” Yaccarino explained that the decision to file an antitrust lawsuit was not taken lightly but was necessary due to the severe financial impact of the boycott.
Elon Musk echoed Yaccarino’s sentiment, sharing her post with the comment, “We tried peace for 2 years, now it is war.” This statement underscores the serious nature of the allegations and Musk’s determination to address the issue.
The lawsuit names several defendants, including CVS Health, Mars, Orsted, Unilever, GARM, and the WFA. The House report revealed that GARM and its members organized boycotts and used indirect tactics to demonetize and limit certain platforms and content creators.
Internal emails from GARM head Robert Rakowitz were also disclosed, allegedly showing him bragging about X’s revenue being “80% below forecasts” since the boycott began. Rakowitz later claimed this was a “self-effacing joke.”
BlazeTV’s James Poulos commented on the situation, suggesting that the conflict between Musk and X’s advertisers has been building for years.
“Rather than mild-mannered normies afraid of controversial content on X, advertisers operate as a cartel of far-left propagandists, reaping profits from taxpayers on government contracts while conspiring to silence free speech at odds with their radical ideologies,” Poulos said.
As the lawsuit progresses, it will likely draw significant attention to the power dynamics between tech platforms and the advertising industry, potentially reshaping the future of digital advertising.
