Elon Musk says Twitter has legal claim against 'left activist groups' over advertiser boycotts
Musk blamed activist groups for Twitter's 'massive drop in revenue' caused by companies pausing ads
The Heritage Foundation's Jake Denton breaks down some of the biggest changes that Elon Musk is implementing at Twitter on 'The Evening Edit.'
Elon Musk claimed Monday that Twitter has grounds to pursue legal action against activist groups that have urged an advertiser boycott in the wake of his $44 billion deal to purchase the social media platform.
Tom Fitton, president of the conservative watchdog Judicial Watch, asked on Twitter if Musk "has tortious interference claims against the Left activist groups which are causing damaging advertiser boycotts."
"We do," Musk responded.
Elon Musk attends the 2022 Met Gala at The Metropolitan Museum of Art on May 2, 2022, in New York City. (Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty Images for The Met Museum/Vogue / Getty Images)
Dozens of nonprofits and activist groups sent an open letter last week to executives of major brands that advertise on Twitter, urging them to cease all advertising if Musk "follows through on his plans to undermine brand safety."
"We know that brand safety is of the utmost importance to you," the groups wrote in the letter. "As such, you also have a moral and civic obligation to take a stand against the degradation of one of the world’s most influential communications platforms, and to hold Musk to the pledge he made to you to ensure that Twitter is a welcoming and civil place for everyone."
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Musk blamed those groups and others for a "massive drop in revenue" that Twitter has experienced in the wake of his purchase, even though he says "nothing has changed with content moderation."
"We did everything we could to appease the activists," Musk tweeted Friday. "Extremely messed up! They’re trying to destroy free speech in America."
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Several companies have temporarily paused advertising on Twitter after Musk's purchase, including General Motors, Volkswagen's Audi, and General Mills.
Advertising revenue made up $1.08 billion out of Twitter's total reported revenue of $1.18 billion in the second quarter of 2022.